


Identity Theft

by Jellyneau



Series: Identity Series [3]
Category: Broadchurch, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Crossover, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-07
Updated: 2014-12-07
Packaged: 2018-02-28 13:51:14
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 20
Words: 58,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2734919
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jellyneau/pseuds/Jellyneau
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After having faced life threatening shifts to their very identities, Rose and the Doctor have one last hurdle to negotiate before they can safely begin living their lives together as a bonded pair. But in their attempt to face that obstacle, their relationship is put to the test in a way they could never have anticipated. Broadchurch/Doctor Who Crossover</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Author's Notes:

Welcome to the third installment in my Identity series. Id love to say that this could be read on its own, but, you know it just can't. Sorry. So yes - if the summary caught your eye, I'd suggest you read the other stories, cause this one will definitely be referring to events in the last two stories.

For those of you choosing to continue this journey with me welcome back! Strap yourself in and hang on!  


  
****

### Identity Theft - Chapter 1: Plea Bargain

Rose sat in the jumpseat watching the Doctor move solemnly around the console, rechecking coordinates and adjusting… time things. Rose would’ve normally laughed inwardly at her lame mental description of the controls he was manipulating, but right now there was no room for humour. Right now there was only anxiety flitting in her belly. They’d put off travelling to their destination now for a full six days, but they couldn’t wait any longer. To do so was putting them and anyone they cared for at risk. Neither of them had spoken much about it since the Doctor and Jack had saved her from the Master, but they both knew the subject needed to be dealt with. They’d had to address the elephant in the control room.

The conversation had been solemn and serious, as she’d known it would be. She and the Doctor had held hands while he explained what would happen. Now, as they headed toward their fate, the mood in the TARDIS was decidedly heavy. The old girl seemed to sense their purpose as well and shuddered her disapproval regarding their intended destination. Despite her protestations, however, the Doctor resolutely held his own and the ship travelled steadily through the vortex toward their intimidating destination. Gallifrey.

It had been only a few days since the Doctor and Rose had escaped the Master with Jack’s help, and those days had been tumultuous in emotions ranging from absolute joy to pure dread. Right now, the joy factor was at a minus ten.

As the TARDIS landed in the prescribed zone, she dimmed her lights a bit in continued objection to where they’d ended up. Patting the console in reassurance, the Doctor turned and looked at Rose with a carefully crafted expression of support and strength. She knew he felt as anxious about opening the door as she did, but he was clearly determined to be strong for her, for which she was admittedly thankful. Normally she hated being coddled, but in this particular instance, she didn’t mind one bit. These were his people. She supposed they were now her people as well, but seeing as she was an apparently unwelcome addition to the Time Lord family, she wasn’t too excited about showing up for Sunday dinner. And judging by the Doctor’s attempt to shroud his feelings from her mind… the first time since they’d bonded that he’d done so… he wasn’t too thrilled to be introducing her to them, either.

Taking a deep breath, the Doctor strode over to her side and took up her hand in his. The authorities would be waiting outside, she knew. He’d explained what would happen, but she couldn’t help but be worried. What if his plan didn’t work? No. She couldn’t think that way. It would work. It had to work.

Now standing by the door, the Doctor turned and nodded at her. This was it. She nodded back, trying to send him some mental reassurance. Obviously sensing her attempt, a ghost of a smile crossed his lips and she felt pure pride and affection reverberate through their bond. God. What if… what if something happened to him? She wouldn’t want to go on. She knew that much.

The Doctor had been reaching for the door when he stopped and turned, his eyes boring down on her. “No. No Rose. You can’t… I can’t go out there… I can’t do this if I know that’s how you feel,” he said, sounding almost desperate. “I have to know you’ll do everything in your power to be okay. Even if I’m not. Do you understand?” he insisted.

Rose was taken aback by the pronouncement. “What? How did you…” she started before he cut her off.

“I can’t read your mind, Rose, but I know that feeling. It’s exactly what I felt with the thought of losing you… when I found out Jack had you. I know exactly what I was thinking. And I can’t go through with this if I can’t trust you to do what I told you if it comes to that. I need your promise, Rose,” he said, his eyes wide and serious.

Unable to lie to him, she shook her head. She’d only agreed in the first place because she knew he’d feel better about all this if she did. And he hadn’t made her promise. But she knew she could never leave him. No matter what. If it ever came down to it, she knew she’d rather lose her life with him than live on alone. She lost her first husband and it nearly killed her as well. She knew she could never go through that again. Never. “I know you would want me to leave you if it came down to that, but I couldn’t. I wouldn’t. Ever. So you can just… forget that part of your plan right now. I’m not ever leaving you,” she confirmed.

Frustration played on his face and through their bond. “You can be cross with me all you want, Doctor. I’m in this for good. Got that?” she challenged. Voices drifted through the doors from outside the ship. They were waiting for them.

The Doctor was completely conflicted, she could tell. It didn’t matter though. This had to happen, and she wasn’t about to compromise on her position regarding leaving him. So she took the choice out of his hands and ducked around him, opening the door and stepping out before he was even aware she’d done so.

“Rose!” she heard him call behind her even as she was greeted with the startled shouts of the guards surrounding the TARDIS and a cold, solid blast of icy wind. Instantly the noises around her died out and she was surrounded by an impenetrable wall of… wobbly air. That’s what it appeared to be, anyway. Some sort of… force field or something held her apart from everything around her. She could still see everything, but she couldn’t hear them. They were… out of sync somehow. She could _feel_ it rather than confirm it. Somewhere inside her she could tell she was in some sort of different… time field or something. She watched helplessly as the Doctor followed her out of the TARDIS and only to run straight into the guards. She called out to him, but her voice seemed to be absorbed by the air around her, as if she was in some sort of vacuum. The Doctor’s face morphed from worry to anger as she watched him react to her being contained. His mouth moved in exaggerated movement and she could tell he was shouting as he gesticulated wildly toward her. The guards responded by leveling their weapons, prompting Rose to call out to him in warning. She even tried to send him a mental message, but realized immediately she couldn’t feel him any longer.

That realization hit her harder than any other. His absence felt wrong on every level. It didn’t _hurt_ , really… their bond was still intact… but it was like he was very very far away and it was distinctly uncomfortable. The Doctor, in the meantime, had raised his hands in surrender as the guards approached him. Looking directly at their captors, his eyes were resolute and dark. He wasn’t pleased with how she’d been treated, she knew, and she pitied the Time Lord who’d ordered her capture. Nodding at her in an obvious attempt to reassure her, he unwillingly began moving after being prodded unceremoniously in the back.

“NO!” she shouted fruitlessly as she watched him being led off. Where were they taking him? Probably to see the council, she reasoned. That’s what he’d said they’d probably do. He hadn’t anticipated exactly what they’d done, though. He’d told her they’d probably both be escorted to the council together once they’d ascertained that she was no threat. So far, though, they hadn’t made a move to release her. In fact, the guards around her seemed to settle in rather than to make any move to do anything specific with her.

Very soon, though, a man stepped into the room and she instantly knew why she hadn’t yet been released. It didn’t take the brain of a Time Lord to know that she was in for some significant trouble.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

 

At least half of the Time Lord council who were seated before him stared at him in obvious disbelief and some of those wore expressions of near disgust. To suggest that Time Lords should really be seen as _no better_ than any other species was preposterous to many. There were those, however, who held the opposite view on the council. Romana, whose measured reaction he knew was a tactical choice, nodded thoughtfully at his proposal and there were even a few Time Lords who actually looked relieved that someone had said out loud what they’d clearly been thinking for years.

It had been one hour and forty-five relative minutes since he’d been brought into the council chamber and the time had been spent with him facing accusations of treason and imprisonment, him making very compelling arguments for his actions, and finally, his proposal for a reexamination of Time Lord law.

It wasn’t even a moment after the Doctor had stopped speaking before opponents to his idea were up in arms over his suggestion that so called ‘lower species’ should never be subjected to study that might cause them harm; either physical or mental. Renewed threats of punishment and criminal charges were shot through the air directed squarely at him from one side even as the other praised his forward thinking and fair mindedness. As he stood listening to them all argue, his mind searched for Rose. He’d lost mental contact with her when she’d been placed in the DTI and it didn’t need saying that he was terrified for her. The Time Lords wouldn’t likely have begun experiments already, but they’d probably started bloodwork. He’d told her that there was a possibility they might try to take her, but he hadn’t bargained on them acting like bloody barbarians straight off. He was sure they’d have heard him out first before deciding whether to process her or not. It seemed, though, he had been wrong.

All he could hope for now, was that his impassioned plea for sanity had found its mark. And for some, it clearly had.

“Enough!” an authoritative voice boomed above all others in the chamber. The loud voices in the room immediately quieted in response. At the very centre of the room, the Lord President Vayles stood, further commanding the attention of the assembled group. “I have heard enough. This matter requires careful and thorough consideration,” he began.

“Surely you’re not swayed by the ramblings of this… idiot!” the Castellan said, now standing as well.

“My Lord,” Chancellor Spandrell interrupted, “the Doctor has a valid point! There’s no question that we need to continue our efforts to learn about other species, but not at the expense of those individuals we study,” he expounded.

“I said…” the Lord President said ominously, “... that this will argument will be considered further, Gentlemen.”

The Chancellor merely nodded and the Castellan said, “My Lord,” immediately correcting himself, though he was clearly less than pleased to have to do so.

“As for the Doctor…” President Vayles continued, “he has made a compelling argument and it is judged he was acting in good faith, though his means were questionable,” he said, looking pointedly at the Doctor. Then, turning back toward the assembled council, he said, “Given his previously invaluable contribution to the well being of our people, his actions will be pardoned,” President Vayles announced. The chamber was instantly filled with both mutters of discontentment and pleased nods of support for the President’s ruling. “Council is adjourned,” he concluded.

“Lord President,” the Doctor said, interrupting his descent from the dias. The President paused, his eyebrows rising. “Yes, Lord Doctor?”

The Doctor cleared his throat, very aware that everything he cared about was at stake. “May I ask that Rose Tyler be released to my care? As I’ve said, she is now biologically simply another Time Lord and is no threat to anyone,” he said deferently.

The President seemed to consider the request for a moment. “Seeing as how the contentious issue you’ve raised directly involves our handling of your companion’s situation, I will allow that if she is found to truly be full Time Lord with no offending chronon particles, she will be released to you,” the President allowed. “Now. Council adjourned,” he concluded, stepping down purposefully and sweeping out of the room.

 

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

The Doctor swept down the corridors of the Citadel after having been directed to where Rose was being held. They’d asked him to wait in the council ante-chamber but he’d declined, ominously citing the need to make sure his ‘companion’ had been treated fairly. After some debate, Chancellor Spandrell finally agreed and gave him her location.

Now on a mission to retrieve his bondmate, the Doctor strode with singular purpose toward the woman he’d bonded with only days ago. He could feel her now, but something was off. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but what he could do was become livid about it. Whatever it was that was wrong, it was something she surely hadn’t asked for or wanted.

Arriving at the door with the swirling Gallifreyan symbols for ‘Examination Room 22’, he pressed his hand to the door activator and it hissed open. Wasting no time, he entered the room and darted his eyes around, urgently looking for her.

“You can’t come in here, my Lord,” a dark haired, dark eyed woman said, surprised to find a stranger standing in her examination room.

“Oh, I think you’ll find I can,” he assured her, continuing to look around. “I’m looking for a blonde ex-human. Goes by ‘Rose Tyler’,” he explained. “About… yea high?” he said, holding his hand up to just under his chin.

“Doctor?” Rose’s voice called from behind a curtain in the corner.

“Excuse me,” he said politely to the flabbergasted clinician before walking around her and pulling the curtain open wide. Behind it Rose lay on an examination bed, her eyes heavy lidded and her body covered by a flimsy yellow blanket. Her arms were outstretched and fastened down with fabric belts and her legs were also splayed open and held apart similarly. The Doctor felt angry bile rising in his throat as he read her situation in one quick look. They’d ‘examined’ her alright. Red played before his eyes and he turned to pierce the attendant with his full Oncoming Storm gaze. “I want to speak to whoever did this. Who examined her?” he demanded in a voice so low and dark he was sure if he’d been on the receiving end he’d have been frightened himself.

The woman swallowed, her eyes open wide. “I, er… It was Maxil, my Lord. He just completed the physical and mental examinations. He just stepped out, but he’ll be back, I believe,” she said, obviously hoping she’d answered the question in a way he wouldn’t take her head off for.

Nodding slowly in clear dismissal of her, the Doctor turned back to Rose and undid the bindings. First he undid her legs and and then moved to her hands, rubbing the skin where the fastenings had been too tightly tied. “Rose,” he said softly, brushing her hair from her forehead.

Rose’s eyes had slid closed but opened again with his call of her name. “Doctor,” she smiled dopily. “My Doctor,” she smiled a bit.

Picking up her hand, he leaned in and ran his tongue along her wrist. Pulling the chemicals apart in his mouth and cataloguing them, he quickly realized that in addition to her significantly elevated copulorine hormone… a normal byproduct of bonding... her body was oozing glixozine and brilopine; the Gallifreyan equivalents of antispasmodics and a tranquilizers. The first was given so any manipulation and internal examination they’d done wouldn’t be interfered with by her body’s natural ‘get the hell out of me’ reaction and the second so she wouldn’t fight the procedure itself. The tranquilizer, he knew, could also be used to negate the effects of an unwanted mental assault in Time Lords.

“Am I okay?” Rose drawled, her brows furrowed having watched his oral analysis.

Making himself calm enough to give her a somewhat reassuring look, he answered, “Yeah, Rose. You’re just…” he paused having to swallow down his once again rising anger, “... they gave you some drugs. They should wear off soon, though. Why don’t you close your eyes. Have a little kip. I’m not leaving you. I promise,” he vowed. And he _dared_ anyone to even _suggest_ that he do.

“Mmmm…” she hummed, closing her eyes. “They made her leave. The girl. She was nice,” she mumbled. “I was so scared,” she said, her brow furrowing. “He said he’d make it hurt,” she muttered. “It hurt a lot,” she added in a whisper, curling up on the table on her side facing him, her eyes still closed.

Her words sparked a flame of white hot anger so intense he thought he might not be able to hold it together much longer.

At just that moment, Maxil walked into the room and straight into the Doctor’s wrath. “You,” he said lowly, rounding on the physician. “It was YOU! _You_ did this to her,” he seethed.

Completely taken aback by the abrupt confrontation, Maxil staggered back a few paces before pulling himself together enough to stand straight before the furious Time Lord. “Yes,” he said calmly, now standing his ground. “I did the required examination, Doctor, as ordered by the Chancellor’s High Guard.”

“And it was him who ordered an internal examination?” the Doctor seethed.

“Yes, in fact, he did. Specifically, in fact,” he sneered.

The Doctor’s hands fisted at his sides. “And who is the High Guard, exactly?” he asked ominously.

Ignoring the Doctor’s question, Maxil half smiled. “I was very surprised to learn during my examination of the subject, that she’s _bonded_. How very quaint,” he said, quirking an eyebrow. “Bonding with a mutant. Tell me, Doctor… what was it like having intercourse with an evolved ape?” he said with disgust.

The Doctor was about to lunge at the cretin standing before him, but just then the Chancellor entered the room, forcing the Doctor to stand down. “Chancellor,” Maxil said in formal greeting. The Doctor, too worked up to do anything but practically vibrate in anger, merely gritted his teeth.

The tension in the room was palpable at this point, and the Chancellor was clearly not unaware of it. “Doctor. Maxil. I assume all is as it should be?” he asked, eying both the men.

“Of course,” Maxil agreed. “The subject…”

“ _Rose_ ,” the Doctor added pointedly, his fury seeping through his forced cordiality.

“... is indeed fully Time Lord,” he confirmed formally.

“As I said she was,” the Doctor affirmed.

Looking again between the two men, the Chancellor nodded. “Good. Then she is free to go. Maxil… I’ll need her report,” he added.

“Right away, my Lord,” Maxil replied, shooting the Doctor a smug look before sweeping out of the room.

With Maxil gone, the Doctor’s anger ebbed a bit. That didn’t mean he was about to take what happened to his bondmate lying down. “Chancellor,” the Doctor said seriously. “Can I have a word?”

“Of course. What can I do for you, Lord Doctor,” he asked formally.

“I’m not positive, my Lord, but am I right in assuming your position is up for renewal soon?” he asked, knowing the answer already.

The Chancellor looked a bit put out, but answered nonetheless. “Not that it’s been announced yet, but yes, my post will soon be brought up for review. It’s mandatory after the age of fifteen hundred,” he said a bit defensively.

“I’m aware,” the Doctor said, ignoring the man’s defensiveness. “I know it’s none of my business, but I have to say… I quite like you. I’d hate for someone with, let’s say… fewer moral qualms… to assert their dominance over you,” the Doctor advised.

“What do you know, Doctor?” the man asked, clearly now on his guard.

“Only that one of your guards… one of the many who were sent after Rose… he was very close to taking it upon himself to present her as a trophy. Proof that he should be considered for Chancellor,” he advised.

The Chancellor thought for a moment before a light bulb practically appeared over his head. Looking up at the Doctor, a look of dark understanding coloured his features. “The Master,” he whispered. “And he’s already managed to coerce a number of Lords to elevate him to the position of ‘High Guard’.”

The Doctor’s blood once again began to boil. So it had been the Master who had ordered the invasive examination of his bondmate. It was all becoming very clear. The Doctor and Rose had escaped him at the hotel and this was his payback. Purposeful torture of the one whose existence mattered most to him.

“Thank-you, Lord Doctor. I’m in your debt,” he vowed.

“And I yours,” the Doctor confirmed, looking at Rose with significance. As the Chancellor turned to leave, the Doctor added, “Oh, and Chancellor… be careful. The Master is not above breaking every law there is in order to gain what he wants.”

Nodding his understanding, the Chancellor turned and walked away.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

 

The Doctor reverently dressed Rose, working hard not to escalate into a vengeful fury again, and carried her back to the TARDIS in his arms, declining the offer of a wheelchair equivalent. He couldn’t bare to be physically separated from her at the moment and the closer she was, the better.

Finally back on board their shared home, he laid her on the jumpseat and quickly threw his ship into the vortex. The further away he and Rose were from Gallifrey, the better, as far as he was concerned.

That done, he scooped up his bondmate and made his way to their shared room with her. It would take a while before she’d fully metabolize the medication they’d given her and he wanted her to wake in a place she was comfortable. Somewhere she was cherished.

Laying her down on the bed, he carefully undressed her again and slipped her under the covers.

“Not in the jam, Tony…” she mumbled in her sleep, making the Doctor smile. At least she wasn’t dreaming of whatever they’d put her through, he thought angrily.

Stripping out of his kit, he climbed into bed beside Rose and wrapped himself around her protectively. Her mind still didn’t feel right to him, but the medication was still coursing through her veins. It would still be a while before she returned to normal. Contenting himself with just feeling her warm body enwrapped by his, he closed his eyes and worked to let go of the continued frustration he felt over her treatment. At least he’d managed to alert the Chancellor. If nothing else, at least they were going to keep and eye on the Master and Maxil from now on.

With that thought, he allowed himself to let it go. They were far away from Gallifrey and Rose was safe now. She was firmly ensconced in his arms and he wasn’t going to let anyone else hurt her. Not ever again.  



	2. Chapter 2

Author's Notes:

This was a difficult chapter to write mostly because I found it a bit disturbing. WARNING: There is the possible interpretation of non-con in this chapter. Just wanted to put that out there because I wouldnt want anyone upset for reading it.  


****

### Identity Theft - Chapter 2: Hands

****

 

The Doctor stood with his back ramrod straight as he glared at the group of Daleks surrounding him. Rose was a good distance from them, watching and hiding behind a pile of rubble just as he’d told her to do. She knew she should be terrified for him, but she felt oddly detached as she watched him speak animatedly to the group of killing machines. He’d be fine. He was always fine.

She couldn’t make out his words, but she could tell he was becoming more agitated with every reply he got from them and they were far from backing down. Suddenly, the Dalek in the middle of the group moved forward and a fiery blast exploded from the weapon protruding from it’s front. The Doctor’s body flew back at least twenty feet before landing in a heap. Smoke tendrilled up from his writhing form as Rose watched the Daleks turn and leave.

Muted anxiety filtered slowly through her. Once the last of the Daleks disappeared from view, Rose stood. The Doctor’s body looked so small from here. So small. In the back of her mind she felt her connection with him fade as he let go of life. Walking resolutely across the distance to stand beside him, she looked down on her husband… the man she’d thought she’d be tied to for centuries. His eyes were shut and blood oozed from the burnt hole in his chest. He wasn’t regenerating. Hmmm.

“Rose,” a whisper escaped his blood soaked lips.

Sighing, she kneeled down beside him. Taking his hand, she felt him squeeze it weakly. “I... love you,” he managed breathily.

“I know,” she said sorrowfully, patting his hand.

His breaths became more and more laboured and a tear dripped from the corner of his eye to trail down into his hair.

Looking up, Rose took in the sky. The sun was almost down. If she didn’t get back to the TARDIS soon there was a chance she’d run into those gorilla-like creatures again… not something she was remotely excited about doing.

Letting go of the Doctor’s hand, she placed it over the hole in his chest. Grunting to get even small slivers of air, the Doctor barely reacted. Standing, Rose looked down at him one last time. A little grimace crossed her features and she blew air through her lips. She didn’t really have to _wait_. He surely didn’t even realize where he even was anymore. Turning, she started to walk toward where he’d landed the TARDIS earlier and somewhere deep inside her a pang of sadness sprouted, making a tear form and fall down her cheek.

 

OoOoOoOoOoO

 

Rose gulped in a room full of air and sat bolt upright in bed. Hot tears streamed down her face and panic filled her. A sob tore from her throat in stark contrast to the lack of response she’d had to the idea of the Doctor dying in her dream. Rolling down onto her side, she curled into a ball and continuing crying, actually revelling in the remorse she felt over the imaginary death of the man she loved more than any other.

An echo of worry filled her mind and in moments the Doctor was by her side. “Rose…” he said, quickly assessing the situation. “It’s okay, love. It was a dream. That’s all,” he soothed, running his hand along her back as she crawled into his lap.

“Oh, God. It was so awful. I… I didn’t even _care_ , Doctor. You were… in my dream you were dying, and I just… stood there. It was like you were just some bloke I’d known for a day or two. Not even! It was like… an inconvenience that you were dying,” she explained, wiping at the tears as they fell.

“Shhhh… It’s okay now, Rose. It was just a dream. That’s all,” he said gently, rocking her a bit.

“Yeah,” she reluctantly agreed. “It just felt… I felt… just… oh, I don’t know. It was bloody awful, that’s all,” she finished, reaching her arms around him to hug him. Taking a deep breath she said, “Sorry if I worried you.”

“Don’t apologize, Rose. I’m just glad it was only a dream that had you feeling like that,” he said, hugging her back. After a few moments he asked, “You hungry? I could whip us up a traditional English breakfast. All the fixin’s?” he offered.

Rose pulled back and smiled a bit, wiping the remaining tears from under her eyes. “Sure,” she agreed. “I’ll help, though. I’m afraid to leave you alone in the kitchen after what happened last time,” she said, raising her eyebrows exaggeratedly in an effort to lighten the mood.

“Oi! That was a completely understandable mistake,” he said, obviously taking her lead. “How was I supposed to know you shouldn’t sonic Larulian pancakes? No other pancake I’ve ever soniced has exploded. Not one!” he said in his defense.

“Riiiight,” Rose grinned, her tongue touching her teeth.

“Rose Tyler… you’re evil, you are. And in my defense, I’ve soniced Larulian _bagels_ before and nothing happened to them other than the fact that they got warmer… which was the original point, after all. Who would’ve thought their pancakes would have such different chemical properties?” he continued explaining.

“Alright, fine. It wasn’t your fault,” she said, playfully rolling her eyes. “I’m still gonna keep an eye on you in the galley, though,” she warned.

Grumbling exaggeratedly, he headed to the door. “Nine hundred years old and I still get supervised visits to the kitchen,” he lamented. “It’s a good thing you’re so distractingly attractive, Rose, otherwise I might not have forgotten to be hurt by your lack of confidence in my culinary skills,” he said in mock affront as he left the room.

“Daft alien,” she smiled, shaking her head. Climbing out of bed, she padded to the loo and jumped into the shower under the already steady stream of water which was, as always, immediately just the right temperature. Sighing, she closed her eyes and let it sluice over her, willing the warmth to wash away the cold feeling still leftover from the disturbing dream. The TARDIS, which now played steadily in the back of her mind, emerged to push a soothing warmth through her. Smiling, she touched the wall of the shower affectionately. “Thanks, old girl,” she said, truly grateful for the support. Oddly, she felt like she really needed it right now. She wasn’t feeling quite… right. Since she’d woken with that horrid nightmare an unsettling feeling of… unease… seemed to have nestled somewhere inside her.

God. Look at her. It was a bloody _dream_ , for heaven’s sake, and here she was obsessing over it. Sighing, she tried to let it go. Clearly this new biology took some getting used to. Maybe that’s all this was about. Feeling a bit ‘detached’ from herself. It would make sense if that was the case. It wasn’t often a person completely had their biology altered to become a whole other species, after all. Then again… the drugs she’d been given yesterday on Gallifrey… maybe this was some side-effect of them. She made a mental note to ask the Doctor when she got to the kitchen.

Being that the TARDIS was able to keep the water a steady temperature for an inordinate amount of time, Rose knew she could theoretically stay under the calming cascade of liquid indefinitely, but common sense ruled and she reluctantly climbed out of the shower and toweled off. They hadn’t talked about where they were going to head to today. Really, neither of them had really thought about much beyond their impending visit to Gallifrey before yesterday. Now that the immediate threat was over, however, they were free to actually consider their future… both immediate and long term.

Once again, the uneasy feeling stole it’s way into her hearts. Sighing, she once again tried to tamp it down. Like she’d already considered, it was probably just her body trying to adjust to all the changes or it was merely a side effect of the drugs.

Pulling on a jumper and a pair of jeans, she looked at herself in the mirror and actually liked what she saw there. Making herself smile at her reflection, she did her best to replace the lingering disquiet with something positive. She was a whole new woman now with a whole new universe to explore. She was bonded with the most amazing man in all the galaxies combined. There was nothing to feel uneasy about, right?

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

Breakfast had been a noisy affair, with the Doctor chatting away nonstop about their options as to which planet they could visit next. Rose listened as he went on and found herself getting oddly tense. She’d always loved listening to him, but today, she found his chatter to be a tiny bit grating.

“What do you think, then?” the Doctor said, looking at her intently. Looking up at him, she realized she hadn’t really been listening. “About the Dlipod cluster?” he said, as if that would help her refocus. It didn’t.

“Sorry, Doctor… I’m… what did you say?” she said, feeling a bit badly that she’d been so lost in her own thoughts.

“Rose, are you okay?” he asked, his brown eyes squinting a bit as he leaned in to study her own. “You seem… a bit off, today,” he said honestly.

God. Was this what it was going to be like now? Was he going to be constantly studying her and analyzing every little feeling she had? It was bad enough she’d had to deal with an overprotective mother before she met him… that’s partly why she’d moved to Broadchurch, after all. The thought that she’d now committed herself to someone who was showing such Jackie like tendencies was unnerving. Trying not to let her irritation show, she said, “I’m fine, Doctor. I’m just… I think that dream really threw me off,” she shared, knowing what she was saying was definitely true. There was no lie there.

“Oh,” he said simply, obviously unsure what else to add.

Sighing, she stood and took her plate to the sink. “Look… I’m sorry, I just… I don’t know what’s gotten into me today,” she said, quite unsettled by the irritation she was feeling for pretty much everything around her at the moment.

Wait. Maybe she was premenstrual. That’s definitely what this felt like. Like a bad case of premenstrual tension. The memory of her and her mother having one of their most heated rows floated into her mind, making her half smile and half grimace. Both of them had been on the eve of their periods and Rose had decided to pick an argument about some stupid thing or other. The resulting cat fight ended in the most cliche evening ever; chocolate fudge ice cream and a series of chick-flicks that left her and her Mum both bawling their eyes out for most of the evening.

She thought about the possibility for a moment. As far as she knew, she wasn’t due for her monthly for another couple of weeks, but this was a brand new body. Maybe it was that time of the month… or, er… bi-weekly… or whatever… for this one. God. She hoped it wasn’t bi-weekly. Time Lords were supposedly superior… if that was the case, wouldn’t it make sense if it was bi-yearly? She certainly thought so.

From behind her, the Doctor approached and wrapped his arms around her. “Maybe we should just… have a day in, yeah? Take in a couple of movies? Eat chocolate? What do you say?” he suggested lightly.

Rose smiled a bit. He obviously suspected the same thing she did. Part of her wanted to yell at him for just bloody assuming that because a woman was cranky it meant that she was on the rag. The bigger part of her, though, realized that’s exactly what was going on and that the argument was likely self defeating.

Turning in his arms, she hugged him back. “That sounds good,” she said finally. Maybe it was a good idea. Just… stay in and relax. Read a book. Cuddle in front of the telly with a big bowl of popcorn. Yeah. That was sounding better and better as the moments ticked past. Pulling back, she leaned up on her toes and planted a kiss on his waiting lips. “I’ll get the popcorn if you go find the sequel to that movie we watched… the one about the bloke who has two faces… remember?”

The Doctor grinned. “ ‘Duello’. I liked that one too. Won all kinds of awards in 2089, that one did,” he smiled in memory. “Alright, Rose. You’re on,” he grinned, kissing her forehead.

“Good,” she affirmed before shooing him out of the kitchen. “Go on then… I’ll be there in a tic,” she said, turning around to find the popcorn on one of the shelves.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

The rest of the day was spent watching movies and finally after three tear jerkers in a row, they parted so the Doctor could do some tinkering in the console room. She decided to be proactive in her addressing of her mental state and settled on going for a swim. Exercise always helped her with her mood and she suspected it wouldn’t be any different now, even in a different body.

The TARDIS had kindly furnished her with a few bathing suit choices and she chose a hot pink two piece number before making her way down the corridor to the pool. Trying to relax her shoulders as she walked, she tried to calm her mind as well. Whew. What a day.

The pool was just the right temperature and she could feel her taut muscles loosen even as she stepped in. Ahhhh. This was going to feel good. Dipping her whole body under, she stayed under for a few moments just to let herself zen out in the feel of the water comfortingly move around her body. A few moments turned into a few minutes before she realized she hadn’t needed to breathe yet. Her lips turned up to a smile with the discovery. This Time Lord thing was really fantastic! Her lungs _were_ starting to burn a tiny bit, though, so she lazily made her way to the surface and drew in a relaxed breath, letting the cool air fill her.

Deciding to try her hand at this whole breath holding thing again, she took a gulp of air and submerged herself again. The water eased around her and she let it continue to soothe her jangled nerves. A warmth spread through her mind as she did. It was so inviting. Must be the TARDIS again… though the ship felt a bit different. She wasn’t about to make a fuss, though. She hadn’t felt this relaxed since… well, since she’d fallen asleep in the Doctor’s arms after they’d bonded.

The comfort and relaxation grew and spread through her, making her feel like jelly. It was intoxicating. Her mind seemed to start floating… she felt so light. Irrationally, she swore she felt soothing hands playing up and down her body as she continued floating… they worked on her muscles, making them almost putty-like as she lay suspended in the warm liquid of the water. Splaying herself out in the pool, she felt the delicious movement of those calming hands make their way around her whole body until she could swear they were gently rising up her thighs to further spread her. Unbidden, arousal spiralled through her. The warm pressure of another body felt like it covered her then, making her want. Writhing against it, she felt both bizarrely free and helplessly surrounded at the same time.

A burning sprouted from somewhere inside her then. It felt like white hot _need_. It was a feeling she’d experienced before, but never to this degree. The body above her pressed her so that she felt more aroused than she’d ever remembered feeling, while at the same time, it surrounded her… holding her so that she was helpless to move.

The burning sensation was growing and pain began to replace the deep arousal she’d been feeling so that a panic began building inside her. She began trying to thrash against the unseen force that was so lovingly holding her down, but her body wouldn’t comply.

Swirls of colour played before her eyes as she threw them open. In and among the colourful moving lights, waves of black spots began to swim. Swim. Her mind was swimming away now. Hmmm. Maybe that was best.

Closing her eyes again, she let the dark capture her mind even as the soothing hands stroked her hair and face.

Then the universe was gone.

 


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Notes:

Okay, folks. Adult rating applies. Hope you like!

****

### Identity Theft - Chapter 3: Rescue

****

Lying under the console, the Doctor tweaked the connections in the temporal modulator. Not that they particularly needed it, though a bit of tweaking never hurt, he reasoned. The TARDIS seemed to disagree, however, and periodically gave him a half-hearted jolt to remind him to concentrate. Admittedly, his heart wasn’t really in it. He’d just wanted to give Rose some space. They’d been together non-stop since their bonding and though he personally had no problem with it, he knew she wasn’t used to having someone both beside her all day and inside her head all the time. As a Time Lord since birth he’d never _not_ had anyone in his head, though this was admittedly much more intimate than anything he’d experienced before now.

He wondered absently how much Rose could sense the rest of the Time Lord population. He had been born on Gallifrey, and he knew that both proximity and exposure at birth helped to determine the strength of the connection with other Time Lords. Since she’d had the benefit of neither at the time of her ‘birth’, so to speak, it was likely that her mental connection to their people was tenuous at best.

Reaching back, he absently ‘looked’ for her. Her energy was actually quite calm now, he was thankful to note. She still wasn’t quite ‘right’ to him yet… it seemed the drugs they’d given her on Gallifrey had done quite a number on her all around. She’d been on edge since she woke, making him wonder as to her overall biological well being. He hadn’t wanted to smother her, but he couldn’t help but feel a bit concerned and he was dying to do a quick scan just to ease his mind. He thought better of it though when he opened his mouth to bring it up and Rose gave him a sideways glare that could’ve rivaled that of a Sycorax.

It occurred to him earlier that it may be, er that time of the relative ‘month’ for her. Time Lords didn’t have menstrual cycles, but a female had estrous cycles that still had their hormonal influences. He’d experienced those first hand with his first wife and his granddaughter and knew the signs. He’d wisely learned, however, that bringing it up was a very bad idea. A very very not good idea in fact. So he’d subtly suggested a day in, for which he later patted himself on the back. It had been best all around for them to avoid anything that involved him annoying her. Like… talking. Or… breathing.

Finally he’d suggested he should probably get some needed work done in the control room and she’d readily agreed that he’d better get it done. Really, he could just tell she’d needed some time to herself today. So here he was, now annoying the other woman in his life. The TARDIS.

He was about to close the panel when he felt a rather heated pang of arousal from where Rose lived in his mind. The feeling was quite strong, making him nearly drop the metal sheet he was trying to place over the wires he’d been poking at. Wow. Whatever she was thinking about, he now desperately wished he’d gone with her wherever she’d gone earlier. Maybe he should go find her. She might, er… need him. Yeah. That’s it.

Crawling out of the small space, another brilliant pulse of arousal filled him from the back of his mind where Rose was currently throwing out erotic feelings so strong he nearly lost his breath. Getting up quickly, he took off at almost a run to find her.

Normally, if he was in full control of his faculties, he’d have left her alone to, er… discover her new body a bit. But as a newly bonded pair, the feelings she was projecting were almost a beacon for him. His body responded whether he wanted it to or not, and it was quickly becoming a biological imperative that he find her.

Clearly the TARDIS could sense his urgency and helpfully lead him down the maze of corridors to wherever Rose had wandered off to. He was nearly there… he could feel her closer. He was already loosening his tie and had dropped his jacket in the corridor a couple meters back. Then a new feeling began emanating from Rose’s nest in his mind… it was fear. And… panic.

Instantly the arousal he’d been nursing fell away to be replaced with urgent concern. Running now, he bounded into the pool room. Searching around frantically, he couldn’t see her. Then he saw it. A still form resting at the bottom of the deep end. “ROSE!” he shouted.

Without thinking, he dove headfirst into the water, moving as quickly as he could manage to get to her. In stark contrast to the Doctor’s frantic anxiety, Rose’s relaxed lips were parted slightly and her eyes were closed and peaceful. In the depths of the water, the Doctor wrapped an arm around her chest and turned to push off from the bottom of the pool with his feet. Their ascension took forever, it seemed, but they finally broke the surface of the water. Quickly turning Rose so her face was fully exposed to the air, he dragged her quickly to the edge of the pool.

“Rose! Gods…” he panted, heaving her up and out of the water. Crawling out after her he immediately set to work giving her CCPR. It took only a few breaths before she was spluttering and coughing, water pouring from her lungs as she did so.

Rolling her onto her side to help her evacuate the liquid from her body, he smoothed her wet hair from her face. “Rose! Oh, Gods… it’s okay… you’re okay,” he kept muttering, more to reassure himself than to inform her.

It took a couple of minutes, but eventually the coughing eased. Holding her head now in his lap, he continued cooing reassurances until she finally spoke. “What… what happened?” she spluttered.

“I was just going to ask you that,” he answered honestly. “What do you remember?”

“I, er… I remember deciding to swim. I was so tense,” she said, pausing then to cough again as her lungs protested the assault they’d suffered. Finally, gaining her breath again, she added, "Then… I remember trying to hold my breath. It was so relaxing under the water,” she explained. Then her brow furrowed as she tried to recall what happened next. Suddenly her expression changed and her cheeks pinkened a bit. “I’m not exactly sure what happened next,” she said a bit tentatively.

It was the Doctor’s turn to furrow his brow. “Try to remember, Rose. It’s important. We need to figure out what happened to you. Whatever it was you were… whatever was happening… you don’t need to be embarrassed,” he suggested, knowing she was probably uncomfortable talking about, uh… pleasuring herself.

Rose’s expression hardened instantly. “I said I’m not sure what happened, Doctor. And I’m not, okay?” she said, sounding decidedly irritated. Rolling over, she got to her feet and he did the same.

“Hang on… I’m just saying… something happened to you, Rose. I just… we need to make sure you’re okay,” he said, his own voice betraying his own irritation. He was just trying to help her for Rassilon’s sake.

“Well, I’m fine now,” she concluded. “I just got carried away with the whole new Time Lord breath holding thing,” she stated, wringing out her hair as she walked away from him.

Irritation filled him. How could she be so flippant about this? She’d nearly regenerated herself, for Rassilon’s sake! About to say as much, he was halted by Rose who quickly turned on her heel to face him again. “And don’t lecture me, Doctor. I know it was a stupid thing to do, okay? I just… I was working out what my body can do… and I needed some time to myself. Is that so bad?” she asked, her body oozing frustration.

Was it so bad?! What the hell was she talking about?! Of COURSE it was bad! She nearly drowned for pity’s sake! What the hell kind of mistake was _that_?! Despite his irritation, he took a measured breath. Yelling was going to get them both nowhere fast. “I was… I’m just worried about you, Rose. You’ve been, uh… a bit off since Gallifrey. I just want to make sure the drugs didn’t do anything to affect you differently since you’re, well… basically newly regenerated,” he ventured.

Rose let out an annoyed huff with his last statement. “Doctor… I’m fine. Really. I misjudged my stupid breath control. You need to stop trying to find something wrong with me all the time. I was sick for a long time but now… thanks to you… I’m fine. Better than ever! You need to just let me… find out about myself. It’s not everyday someone wakes up to find out they’re a whole other species, you know,” she said, not unkindly.

With her last statement he felt his defenses fall. She was right. Her body had just transformed from human to Time Lord, something she’d never known before now. Of course she was going to need some time to adjust. Her biology, chemistry and brain functioning had completely changed. The more he thought about it, her excuse of simply losing track of her body’s oxygen levels was a distinct possibility. A Time Lord’s efficient use of his respiratory bypass was developed over his first lifetime, but of course, Rose hadn’t had that. This _was_ her first lifetime, and he had to try to remember that.

“I’m… I’m sorry, Rose. I guess I forget how new all of this is to you. I just… I worry, alright? I only just got you back. I can’t lose you again,” he said, knowing it sounded trite, but not caring. It was the truth, after all.

Smiling at him now, Rose moved closer and took his hands. “I’m not goin’ anywhere, Doctor. You’re stuck with me now, yeah?” she grinned, tongue in teeth.

Smiling softly back, he nodded. “Yeah. And I wouldn’t have it any other way,” he said, leaning down to snog those beautiful lips once again.

Leaning into him, Rose’s body pressed against his in a way that awakened the very biological urges he’d recently begun exploring again. His body reacted immediately and strongly; a fact Rose was apparently very aware of.

“Mmmm,” she hummed as they snogged. Finally pulling back, she said, “I think maybe you’re not frustrated with me anymore?” she ventured.

The Doctor couldn’t possibly agree with her more, and let her know as much by pushing his growing erection against her as he pressed his lips against her neck. Rose responded with a low moan and the Doctor immediately smelled the enticing scent of her pheromones permeating the air. Ohhhhhh.

Wrapping her arms around his neck, he cupped her bottom to encourage her to straddle him, which she did readily. Jumping up on him, he easily took her weight and began walking toward the door even as she let her weight press forward to push against his hardness. A low moan escaped him now as he hurriedly walked her back to their room. Pushing the door open, he all but dove for the bed with the woman he loved firmly attached to his front, now pressing beyond arousing kisses against his pulse point just below his ear. He was ever so slightly resentful of the fact that she’d learnt about that particular weakness of his from someone else, but that tiny bit of jealously was quickly replaced with overwhelming arousal as she now sucked lightly on that very spot. Oh Gods. His eyes rolled back in his head as her stimulation sent spikes of hot arousal through him. Well. Two could play at _that_ particular game now, he realized.

Gently pulling back, making her release his neck with a soft ‘pop’, he looked down at her bikini clad form and let that incredible image soak in for a moment. She was _his_. It was… incredible. A smirk rose on his lips then in response to his intention, which was to make her scream as she’d never done before now.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

The Doctor looked down on her with a heated gaze such as she’d never seen from him. Heat pooled in her belly with that look. He had something planned. She knew it from his ‘other’ self, because her husband had always graced with with that very look just before he was about to offer her a treat beyond what she’d imagined.

With that, the Doctor, pulled off his tie, his shirt and his vest so that his chest was bare. Leaning over her then, she thought he was going to snog her, but instead he headed for her neck and kissed a soft trail up to just under her ear. Then he licked her there lightly only to latch on with his lips and tug, suckling her neck as if to give her the hickey of the century.

A sharp intake of breath was her immediate response. The feeling was like no other she’d experienced except for when he was actually doing something similar, er… down there. Desire spiralled through her and she instantly released a pool of moisture from her centre making the Doctor stop and take a deep centred breath through his nose.

Pulling off, he said lowly, “Rose Tyler… I believe you want me,” before latching his lips again to the very spot that had sent her reeling in the first place. His hands rose to touch her temple lightly and she knew immediately what he wanted. And GOD… she wanted it too… SO badly now.

Hastily pulling her hands up to touch his temples as well, their bond flared to a new brilliance as they began sharing the experience of his attentions to this very new erotic spot.

His pleasure of giving her this paired with her pleasure receiving it and in moments she crashed headlong into a powerful climax. A shout of his name left her lips as he rutted against her, frustratingly chasing a release that wasn’t quite ready to happen. Now, though, she desperately needed it too, with them now sharing every sexual experience they were giving each other.

Hastily, she reached down and pulled at his zipper to release his trousers from his waist. He helped by pulling them down and off along with his pants. Helping her as well, they were soon both blessedly naked, their bodies close but not yet joined.

Moving to join lips now, they played at kissing each other as he reached between them to place himself at her entrance. “I’m going to fuck you now, Rose,” he said daringly. She’d not heard him ever talk like this before and she found it more than a little arousing. “And you’re going to scream. Do you understand?”

She nodded mutely, even as she knew her eyes were darkening with arousal. Touching his hands to her temples again, he rekindled the strength of their bond before plunging deep inside her. Knowing that he not only enjoyed her being vocal but that he’d actually _commanded it_ , she let herself release the sounds of her excitement as it built. With each moan of his name and each small shout of her spiking lust his own excitement built and it wasn’t long before they were both tumbling over in pleasure with her shouting his name in earnest as he keened in pleasure above her.  



	4. Chapter 4

Author's Notes:

I left you all with a happy moment, but as you all imagined it was pretty much the calm before the storm. And here comes the angsty storm

Once again please be aware of the ratings for this chapter.  


****

### 

Identity Theft - Chapter 4: Him

 

The Time Lord looked down on her with a steely gaze such as she’d never seen. Both heat and dread pooled in her belly with that look. He had something planned. She knew it from her last experience with him.

With that, he pulled off his clothes, one piece at a time, all the while pinning her down with a look so intense it nearly took her breath away. Leaning over her then, his eyes not leaving hers until the very last second, he headed for her neck and kissed a soft trail up to just under her ear. Then he licked her there lightly only to latch on with his teeth and tug.

A sharp cry of surprise, due to both pain and arousal, was her immediate response. She knew she’d felt something like this before, but not with such… vehemence. Desire spiralled through her and she instantly released a pool of moisture from her centre making the man stop and take a deep centred breath through his nose.

Pulling off, he said lowly, “Rose Tyler… I believe you want me,” before latching his teeth again to the very spot that had made her cry out in the first place. His hands rose to touch her temple lightly and she knew immediately what he wanted. But she wasn’t sure she wanted it. Not with him.

Hastily pulling her hands up to touch his temples as well, as if she had no control of them, a bond flared into an existence she didn’t know was possible.

His pleasure of taking her this way fed through their link and despite her discomfort with this unusual intimacy, she soon felt her treacherous body crash headlong into a powerful climax. A shout of his name escaped her lips as he sent her over the edge, but even as she heard herself say it, she recoiled.

Claiming her lips now, he warned, “I’m going to fuck you now, Rose,” he said darkly. She knew she’d heard those very words before shared in the throes of passion, but now they were only menacing. “And you’re going to scream. Do you understand?”

She nodded mutely, even as she knew her eyes were darkening with something akin to fear. Pushing his hands to her temples again, he rekindled the connection he’d forged before plunging deep inside her. Knowing that he not only enjoyed her being vocal but that he’d actually _commanded it_ , she tried to hold back any sounds that might encourage him. With each forceful thrust, clawing pull of her hair, and bruising clutch of her skin, though, she soon released sounds of traitorous rising excitement despite her discomfort and pain as he neared his release. It wasn’t long before he was tumbling over in pleasure with her shouting his name in earnest as he keened in pleasure above her.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

“Rose!” a man’s voice cried urgently.

Clawing at the weight of sleep still holding her down, she gulped in deep breaths as she felt strong arms surround her. “No!” she shouted, pushing against the restricting bond of the man’s grip.

“Rose! It’s me! It’s the Doctor,” the man’s voice said. “Wake up,” he insisted, making her body slow it’s fight.

Slowly her vision came into focus in the darkened room only to find the Doctor’s concerned face inches from hers. “It’s me, Rose,” he said again, obviously still trying to calm her. “It was a dream, love,” he said, smoothing her hair.

Rose’s breath slowly returned to something akin to normal as she stared at him in the gloom. “God,” she breathed, falling into his arms again, nestling herself in with a deep inhale of his reassuring scent.

“Shhhh,” he soothed. “I’ve got you,” he promised.

After a few calming moments the Doctor pulled back a bit and looked down at her. “Want to talk about it?” he asked gently, his concerned eyes studying her.

No. She didn’t. She really didn’t. She felt like she’d cheated on him. Of course… it was a _dream_ it’s not like she could’ve helped it, but she still felt oddly guilty. As much as she hadn’t wanted what she’d been given in her dream, deep down she knew she _had_ wanted it. Craved it, even.

“No… I just want to forget it,” she said softly, moving in again to be held. She felt like she wanted to somehow just… crawl inside him and be safe. It was a bizarre want, but there it was. That dream had left her feeling the most disconcerting feelings… she felt frightened, lonely, unfaithful, and empty all at the same time. And underlying it all was a lingering strong undercurrent of _longing_.

The Doctor sat quietly, still holding her… and she was incredibly grateful. She already knew how lucky she was to have him, but it was at times like these that she cherished him even more. He was so patient with her.

Appreciative affection filled her heart making her squeeze him a bit tighter. She vowed right then that no matter what her bizarre mood, she’d not make him suffer her ridiculous new hormones anymore. He didn’t deserve anything but her appreciation and she made a promise to herself that she’d just have to put on her big girl knickers and bloody cope with her moods like a grown up.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

Going over the day’s events in her mind, she had to admit that today had started brilliantly, other than the fact that her dream had sullied her mood for a good while after waking. They’d landed on a lush tropical planet that supported an incredibly friendly species of pudgy bipedal humanoids. Happening upon some of them during their nature walk, they’d excitedly brought them back to their village and introduced them to the elders who’d invited them to stay for a celebration feast they were holding that evening for a newly married couple. Obviously wanting to do what would make her happy, the Doctor looked to her for her opinion on the matter. Part of her had been appreciative of his thoughtfulness, but another, more insistent part of her felt annoyed. Why did _she_ have to decide? It was like he was afraid of her reaction in case he made the wrong choice.

And that’s probably exactly what had been happening, a small voice in her mind entreated. The poor man was probably completely flummoxed as to her reactions to him lately and was a bit nervous to rock the boat.

That idea made her halt the judgemental diatribe she had going on in her head. Why was she so eager to look for the negative side of things right now? If she hadn’t known it was probably just PMS, she’d have considered having herself examined by some sort of professional.

Anyhow, she suggested they stay for the celebration in the hope that it would lighten her mood a bit and that it would help take her mind off of the continued disquieting feeling her dream had left her with this morning.

She’d insisted on helping the natives of the village prepare, since she and the Doctor would soon be enjoying their hospitality, and the women of the tribe seemed happy to have her assistance. The Doctor had likewise been pulled away by the males to help ready the fire and to set up other aspects of the celebration, but she hadn’t minded. It was good to get away from him for a bit just to clear her mind.

She’d walked with the other women for what seemed like hours, helping them gather what tasted like the equivalent of blueberries from low growing bushes that were scattered along the forest floor. Rose hadn’t minded it… she truly appreciated the exercise. Her feet hadn’t especially loved it, though, as her shoes had gotten wet during their activities and her feet were blistered from rubbing against the sodden material as she worked.

Getting back to the village, she’d helped prepare the meal under the watchful tutelage of one of the older women in the tribe who took it upon herself to teach this skinny alien something about appropriate food preparation. The elderly woman, referred to as ‘Mishlaben’ by the other, younger females had been very patient and positive with her throughout and laughed heartily at her mistakes… apparently you weren’t supposed to discard the stems as you washed the fruit… you were supposed to keep them in a small pile beside you to later throw over your head for good luck after you were done cleaning. Who knew?

All around, except for her aching feet, the day had been lovely… learning about the people as she worked alongside them, sharing stories about her own experiences with wedding ‘feasts’, and being given appropriate attire for attending such a celebration in _this_ culture. These people weren’t often visited by ‘aliens’, she discovered, though they recounted a few visits they’d had in the past with a few other species, all of which, thankfully, had been quite positive encounters. All around, they seemed quite happy to have her and the Doctor join them for what they considered a very important event in their culture.

It had all been rather therapeutic, actually, all the hard work and conversation. It had allowed her to forget for a while how uncomfortable she’d felt this morning. Throughout the day she’d had pangs of unease and… well, the best way she could describe it was, ‘emptiness’... but she’d been so busy, she hadn’t been able to focus on it, which had been a good thing.

Now, though, as they both fell into the TARDIS, bruised, filthy and exhausted after a harrowing run through the forest, that feeling, along with significant irritation, came back in full force.

Wishing she could just lie on the grating and not move for a few hours to calm down, she nevertheless made herself move up the stairs, leaving the Doctor heaving heavy breaths in and out by the TARDIS doors. “I’m gonna wash up,” she said, biting back a pointed comment about _why_ she had to wash up. How could he just ‘forget’ to tell her the one thing that would have the tribe chasing them with spears across the jungle at night?!

Grumbling to herself, she stalked off down the hallway to her old room and threw open the door. Peeling off her sodden clothing and letting it drop on the floor, she stepped into her old bathroom and turned on the shower full force.

It had apparently ‘slipped the Doctor’s mind’ to tell her that it was an affront to one of their gods to remove footwear while eating. _Slipped his mind._ How did that even _happen_? He had a brain the size of London and it ‘slipped his mind’.

Shaking her head, she stepped into the shower under the hard spray of the steaming water and let it run over her. She was so _angry_ with him. How could he be so… _stupid_?! What sort of idiot just ‘forgot’ about a life or death detail like that?!

Anger seeped through her as she showered, and rather than having the feelings become more muted with the soothing spray of the water on her skin, it seemed the hot needles merely incited her to fury.

Just then she heard a soft knock on the door. “Rose?”

God. Didn’t he know she could almost _kill_ him right now? Deciding not to answer rather than say something she’d regret, she merely formed her lips into a tight line and continued washing under the spray of the water. If he knew what was good for him, he’d leave.

“Rose?” he repeated. She heard the door open then. Oh, for… couldn’t he get the hint?

“I, er… I’m… sorry?” he ventured. He obviously felt her fury through their bond. Well… good.

Once again, she knew she’d better keep her mouth shut, knowing that nothing good would come out of it right now.

“It was, uh… weeellll… it’s been a long time since I’ve been there,” he babbled. “Funny thing, actually… last time I was there it was hats! Couldn’t take off your hat during a meal if you were wearing one. Interesting that it changed to shoes. Wonder why?” he said distractedly to himself, even as her nerves frayed further. “Anyhow… I had read a little snippet about their aversion to bare feet, but… weeeelll… you know me. Bit of a scatterbrain occasionally. Not often, mind. But once in a while…”

She couldn’t take it anymore. Throwing open the shower curtain, she rounded on him. His eyes popped open at the sight of her standing naked under the falling water, her eyes alight with fury.

“Get. Out.” she demanded.

“Uhhh… but…” he started.

“No, Doctor. I mean it. GET. OUT.”

He stood there for a moment, his jaw hanging open slightly, seemingly surprised at the level of her irritation. He seemed to be about to say something else, but wisely thought better of it, and his jaw snapped shut. Nodding, looking unsure as to his next move, he stood there for a moment.

Hot anger poured from her as she watched him flounder. God… he looked like such a twat. What did he _think_ she was going to say if he came in here? That she’d throw open her arms and forgive him just like that?

A tiny part of her, from somewhere buried very deep, shouted that yes, she should’ve done exactly that. That he’d never do anything purposefully to put her in harm’s way. Not if he could help it.

That very tiny part of her was quickly and thoroughly silenced though. The anger she’d been nursing won out and began shaping itself into something different again. Emptiness. Longing. Need. It felt almost… like a cloying ache.

The Doctor, obviously at a loss for once as to what he should say, nodded once and left the loo, quietly shutting the door behind him as he went.

Climbing out of the shower after watching him leave, she toweled off in rough strokes. Once she was sure he was no longer in the room beyond, she opened the door and stomped to her bed, pulling the pink sheets back to climb in. There was no way she was going to sleep in the same bed with him tonight. She just as soon strangle him.

A satisfying image of him, lying beneath her, his eyes bulging slightly as she held him down by the neck with a force she couldn’t possibly possess, filled her mind.

An urgent alarm chimed in her consciousness somewhere. Oh God! What kind of thought was _that_? Not one she could tolerate having… ever. Not for the man she loved.

Then she felt something she hadn’t felt since last night. A push of calm tried to assert itself from somewhere in the back of her mind. The TARDIS. A part of her appreciated the gesture, but a much larger part of her resented the intrusion. An overwhelming feeling of anger surged through her mind then. Pushing back the TARDIS’s assault, she did her best to send back a distinct message. Get the _hell_ out of my head.

The TARDIS retreated quickly, but Rose didn’t miss the hurt. Fantastic. Now she’d hurt the bloody ship’s feelings. Guilt attempted to play through her mind. Fuck! Why should you… I… feel guilty? The stupid ship thinks she knows what you need… she doesn’t! Goddammit!

There was only one person who ever really understood her, and he was… he didn’t anymore. She NEEDED someone who could understand her. Who wouldn’t judge her for just _feeling_. Pushing her face into her pillow, she let out a sob of grief. She was bloody _aching_ inside. She was so empty. She needed… she just… needed.

 


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Notes:

Thanks so much to all who are following this series! You all truly have my humble appreciation.  


  
This has been more difficult to write than the last two, mostly because I love these two so much and the storyline is demanding angst even Im a bit uncomfortable with! Still I promise it will be resolved for our heroes in the end. Hopefully that will keep you all with me through it all!  
  


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### Identity Theft - Chapter 5: ‘Spa’

****

 

The Doctor sat on the floor across the hall from her room, his back against the coral strut. What the hell was going on? Just beyond that door his bondmate was clearly distressed and lonely… and here he was sitting outside her door like a discarded puppy. Every up and down emotion roiling through her right now echoed through him as well, making him feel like he’d just been run over by a lorry. If _he_ felt like this… how must _she_ feel right now?

Worse than all that, though, was that he felt completely powerless to help her. In fact, everything he did seemed to amplify the negative feelings she was wrapped in, making him merely a catalyst for more extreme behaviour.

Sighing, he rubbed his face with his hands. She hadn’t seemed to be herself since he’d taken her from the examination room in Gallifrey and everything he’d experienced in the last day had only cemented his concern. He’d tried to pass it off as mere hormonal changes… but now… he just knew. There was something more going on.

He’d suspected it this morning when she’d woken up smothered in anxiety. He’d felt a myriad of troubling feelings shouting from her place in his mind while she slept, and clearly her dreams were her subconsciousness’s way of trying to process the intense feelings she’d been dealing with since Gallifrey.

Gallifrey. He wasn’t sure how, but he was becoming more and more sure that whatever happened during her ‘examination’ on his planet had traumatized her in a way that he hadn’t even considered. That _had_ to be what was going on. Rose would never have been so blatantly cruel as she’d been otherwise. That he knew. Rose loved him. _His_ Rose loved him with all her heart. He didn’t doubt it. But _this_ Rose… the Rose who had been hurt by those animals… she wasn’t so sure, and the thought that she was pulling away from him frightened him more than any other thought. Whatever went on behind closed doors while he was busy chatting up the council on Gallifrey had had lasting effects, and he suspected the examination ended up being more ‘experimentation’ in the form of neurochemical or even genetic manipulation. He needed to find out what they’d done to her, and to do that, he needed to get her into the infirmary.

But how? He thought of just outright asking her, but he already could imagine how _that_ would be received. Not well. She’d already scolded him for ‘looking for something wrong with her all the time’. A request to do a scan to ease his mind would be tantamount to proving she was right.

Then again… is that what he was doing? Was he looking for problems where none existed? Clearly she was going through something, but… was it more than what could be expected of someone whose entire identity had changed over the couple of weeks? Sure…. he’d experienced it and it had been disconcerting, at best. For her, though… she’d been mutating, then been ‘arched’, then full out changed species… all in the span of a couple of weeks. It was barmy! Of _course_ she was going to experience some mental stress. Couple that with being manipulated and violated on Gallifrey, and she could be a poster child for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. It was simply a fact. Maybe it was a fact he needed to just accept.

Then, though… her mind was _still_ feeling ‘wrong’ to him… somehow their bond was clouded. Slightly… opaque. It was still there. It was still strong. It was just… it was as if someone had draped a thin layer of gauze over top of it. It was disconcerting. He’d tried to pass it off the first day as the lingering effects of the drugs she’d been given on Gallifrey, and later he’d assumed it was simply his own clouded perceptions in light of their combined stress, but now he wondered.

With that thought in mind, he decided. No… he couldn’t simply sit by wondering if his bondmate was alright. If she _was_ , and he was just being an overprotective prat, so be it. He could live with that. If he wasn’t, though… he needed to know as soon as possible.

Now decided on a course of action, his hearts lightened a bit. If something more than simple hormones were affecting Rose, he would soon know and he could do something about it.

Through their link, he could still feel Rose’s distress. The overriding feeling he was getting was emptiness. The second, more disturbing feeling he felt emanating from her was pure, raw longing. It almost made him ache with the strength of it.

What could possibly have her feeling such incredible need? He wasn’t sure, but he was about to find out.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

 

Rose stretched out like a cat, pushing her arms far above her head and pointing her toes so that her body arched in the bed. Relaxing back down into the soft mattress, she smacked her lips. “Ko…” she began to call before her eyes popped open wide and her jaw snapped shut. Where was she?

Looking around, she realized she was in her old room. On the TARDIS. The Doctor’s TARDIS. A sickening feeling filled her belly and she felt bile rise in her mouth. Oh God. She’d thought… she’d really thought she was…

But no. She was _here_. In the back of her mind the TARDIS put up a little alert, as if the cloisters could ring in her mind as well as in the halls. “What?” she said aloud, annoyed again at the unwanted intrusion.

The TARDIS pushed a worried bubble through her mind as an answer. “Oh for heaven’s sake!” she said aloud. “Not _you_ too! Can’t you two just… Arrrrr!” she growled. Standing up, her fists curled at her sides, she shouted into the air. “I’m fuckin’ fine! I’m just sick and bloody tired of you and the Doctor hounding me all the time! Just… leave me alone!” she reiterated.

This time the TARDIS didn’t leave her with a hurt feeling. This time she left her with a distinct mental _shove_. “Owww!” she whined, moving her hands to either side of her head. Bloody ship! Looking up at the ceiling, she shouted, “And STAY OUT!”

The lights in the room dimmed in disapproval before she felt the ship completely dim in her mind as well. Stupid sentient piece of shit, she grumbled, moving resolutely to the loo.

The idea of getting ready for the day was not an appealing one, but she knew if she just lay in bed like she wanted to, that nosey prat she called a bondmate would be at the door checking in on her and she wasn’t eager to have him see her in any way looking lethargic. That’s all he needed was more ammunition in his arsonal.

Showering and getting herself presentable, she finally emerged from her room to face the Oncoming Ramble. God. The thought of his smiling gob made her want to grab his sonic and stick it up his nose. Maybe turn it on high on whatever microwave setting he had ridiculously programmed it with.

Again, her own little alarm bells tried firing in her brain. _Your soulmate. You need him. He needs you._ “Oh, shut up,” she commanded her stupid conscience as she tromped down the corridor. It immediately stood down.

Rounding the corner, she found the Doctor fiddling with some control or other on the console. “Rose!” he said _way_ too enthusiastically. “I… I, uh… thought maybe we could head to the Vuoblulus cluster today? They have a spa there… beyond anything you’ve ever imagined. Massages, pedicures, Muruvian oil baths… you name it,” he suggested. Then, moving slowly toward her, as if she was some… volatile chemical compound, he said, “I’m, er… I’m sorry for yesterday. I am. And…” he paused, stuffing his hands deep in his pockets, though he obviously had been about to take her hands in his, “I want to make it up to you.”

Rose could feel her resolute irritation with him beginning to melt. The poor sod. He really had no idea how incredibly irritating he could be. She supposed she shouldn’t really blame him. It’s not like he’d been born of purebread stock, after all. _What?_

“Alright,” she heard herself agreeing before she could process her mental question. Sighing then, she rubbed her temple. A spa. Well… why not? It might be fun to just… relax somewhere for a day. Somewhere she didn’t have to think about the lonely ache she still felt inside her. A swell of longing flooded her then, making her nearly gasp.

The Doctor had felt it, of course, she realized, seeing his ignorant face looking at her with concern. God! This was… it was nearly unbearable! She… she needed something! No. Some _one_. And that someone wasn’t the man standing beside her.

“Rose?” the Doctor’s voice chimed, floating through the haze of frustrated need.

“Just… let’s go,” she said, trying to act as if she’d merely been distracted for a moment. She knew he probably didn’t buy it, but she really didn’t care at the moment. She just wanted to get off this bloody ship and away from him for a bit.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

The spa he’d landed them at was truly magnificent and she was instantly speechless as they exited the TARDIS. The roof was so far up above them that she thought it was the sky at first and the floors were fashioned from some unusual stone that made them glitter different colours depending on the angle you were looking at them from. The air was lightly accented with what seemed like a natural sort of freshly cut lawn sort of scent. People milled around in various degrees of undress, as though it was perfectly natural to just… let it all hang out. Rose had to remind herself not to let her mouth hang open as she gawked at her surroundings. It was all… breathtaking.

They hadn’t meandered far from the TARIDS when they were greeted by a number of lovely muted orange humanoid women who immediately requested they remove their jackets and shoes, and then lead them to the reception area where a larger, deeper orange male greeted them cordially.

“For two?” he said, looking over the desk, clearly sizing up the new clientele.

“Nah,” the Doctor chirped. “Just one. My lovely wife needs a day. Whatever she wants. No expense is to be spared,” he said grandiosely with a massive grin.

The clerk clearly liked the sound of that and quickly checked the screen in front of him. “Well! Aren’t you lucky, young lady! I have a spot open! This is one thoughtful husband you’ve got here!” he cooed. At mention of her ‘thoughtful husband’, Rose suddenly had an intense urge to push her nails into this alien’s eyes so hard he’d be seeing her nail polish for weeks.

Wow. That had been a rather intense reaction, she realized with a start. Whew. This bloody hormone shit sucked.

“I actually made a reservation,” the Doctor clarified. “For Rose Tyler,” he said, trying to see the screen over the counter.

The alien hit a few keys and studied the display in front of him for a moment before his eyes lit up in obvious remembrance. “Oh, yes! You must be her Doctor, then?” he said, smiling.

The Doctor nodded. “Yup! That’s me,” he confirmed. “Her Doctor.”

Despite her annoyance with him, she couldn’t help a twinge of affection spring up from somewhere deep inside her. Her Doctor. With that tiny spark of appreciation for him, she could feel their bond ignite and brighten. It felt lovely.

The Doctor obviously felt it too, and turned with a little surprised sound to look at her. He hadn’t expected it. That thought made her feel… sad.

_Wait. What the hell reason do you have to feel sorry for him for? This was all his bloody fault in the first place!_ With that, the spark of affection immediately went out and was instantly replaced with frustration. Frustration and that now familiar empty feeling.

Before she could even contemplate the meaning of that, she found herself quickly being whisked away by a number of female attendants who were apparently there to supply her with relaxation.

The Doctor had waved her away, probably pleased to be rid of her, she thought. _Yeah… he should be. You’ve been a complete and total prat, you know. He misses you. He needs you,_ a small bit of her chimed. Screwing up her face in concentration, she willed the thought away and it complied. _Good,_ a more dominant voice said. _You don’t need guilt. What you need it someone who understands you. Really, truly understands you._

Finally arriving at their destination, she was lead to a lushly decorated room and was asked to change into a light robe behind an ornate curtain, which she quickly did. She was more than eager to be distracted. Her mind seemed to be battling with itself now, leaving her feeling decidedly anxious and confused.

Now changed, the attendants beaconed her to sit on on a padded massage table in the middle of the room. Deciding to just… go with it, she let them shimmy her robe off her shoulders so that it pooled around her waist. She had to admit she felt a bit uncomfortable sitting half naked in front of strangers, even though they _were_ just a bunch of women. They seemed completely oblivious to it, however, which made her feel a little less conspicuous. Directing her to lie face first, she did as she was told and within moments she could smell and feel the warm massage oils being dribbled on her back before strong hands began working her over taut muscles.

Her mild discomfort with the situation instantly melted away with their ministrations. The hands felt heavenly on her skin, reminding her a bit of the hands she’d felt in the pool only days ago. Those strong, insistent hands. Making her feel special. Cherished. Lulling her. Pulling her down and away from reality.

Feeling her eyelids becoming heavy under the relaxing assault, she allowed them to close. Concentrating on the soothing movements of the women working on her back, she let herself be lulled into an almost tranquilized sleep.

_No! He’s done this to you! Wake up, my dear girl! Don’t you see what he’s done?!_

The inner voice almost made her jump out of her skin, and her eyes flew open. What? What’s he done?

Remembering she was still face down on the table, she tried to sit up, only to realize the world was swaying and dipping in and out of her awareness. Damn it! Despite her insistence that her muscles comply with her demand that they get her up, her head seemed disproportionately heavy and she was literally unable to will her body to do her bidding. Plopping forward onto the bed, her eyes closed themselves before her awareness of the world around her began to fade.

_He did this to you, Rose. Don’t you see? He wants to cut you off from me. Forever. You can’t let him, Rose. I want you. And I need you. More than he ever could. He’s betrayed us both. Don’t forget…_ , the voice said, echoing in her mind before she finally let go of consciousness.


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Notes:

A mid-week chapter for your perusal. Enjoy!

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### Identity Theft - Chapter 6: ‘Home’ 

The results took a while to download into the TARDIS’s data core, making him feel antsy. He only had a little while longer before Rose woke and he needed to be completely finished looking at her scans before then.

It had been a pretty easy ruse, all around, to get the scans completed. He’d hated doing it. There was no small amount of guilt involved in doing this... especially after feeling the warm trusting pulse from her mind earlier… but he knew he had no choice. He needed to make sure she was alright… that she hadn’t been purposefully harmed while on Gallifrey.

The ‘spa’ establishment, the Doctor had known, of course, was exactly that, but it was also one of the leading facilities in the universe when it came to medical advancements. Knowing he was ‘her doctor’, as she’d confirmed, they had happily granted him access to it’s latest technological innovations, including one of it’s state of the art medical scanners. He’d thanked them profusely, of course, and paid the required access fees plus a significant bonus for their silent cooperation, and he hadn’t been disappointed. The technology had been all that had been promised. It scanned biology down to the microcellular level.

Now, as reading after reading and result after result scrolled down the screen before him, he felt his hearts sink. Other than the elevated bonding hormone, which was to be expected, there was nothing out of place. Normal. Everything was normal.

Not that that shouldn’t make him feel better. It did! As far as he could tell, she hadn’t been genetically altered or physically harmed in any long lasting way. For that, he was undeniably thrilled. It was what that meant in terms of her most recent moods, however, that had him upset.

It meant that she was truly pulling away from him. She was slowly closing herself off from him for no real reason that he could fathom except that she was truly becoming disenchanted with him. Perhaps after the novelty of being with a ‘newer’ version of him had worn off she’d finally realized what she’d ended up with. A man who was basically the equivalent of a runaway. He wasn’t a saviour… he wasn’t a miracle worker… he wasn’t a magician. He was just a very very old man who’d hoped to reclaim his youth by claiming the heart of someone young and virile. Someone who had a thousand years ahead of her instead of behind her.

Continuing to watch the numbers and symbols play across the screen, he knew what he’d have to do now and he was very reticent to do it. He needed to admit what he’d done to her and own up. If she truly was okay, as the readings seemed to be confirming, then he had to come clean and apologize. He’d been so sure she’d been harmed or changed somehow. But now he knew the truth. She was just truly unhappy with him. And this… this was going to push her even further away. He’d more than merely violated her privacy by scanning her without her permission… he’d practically put out a neon sign that he didn’t have faith in their relationship. In her.

Shame filled him with the thought. Of course he had faith in her. It was Gallifrey and the pompous prats on the council whom he didn’t trust. He could only hope and pray that she might understand when he explained why he’d done what he’d done. It had been in her best interests, after all, right?

Leaving the infirmary, he headed to the doors of the TARDIS to find her in the spa complex. He knew exactly where she was, of course, and made his way to the room directly. She wouldn’t be awake yet, but she would be soon enough and he wanted to get to her before she opened her eyes. The light soporific they’d given her to make her sleep usually didn’t have any side effects, but he wanted to give her a light antinauseant just in case it had made her queasy. He didn’t need that on his conscience on top of the incredible guilt he was already carrying because of all this.

Arriving at the room they’d been housing his bondmate in, he quickly entered, pulling out the syringe holding the antinausea medication he’d pocketed before he’d left the TARDIS . To his surprise and dread, Rose wasn’t sleeping peacefully and soundly on the bed before him. Instead, she was sitting up and very ready for him. In a very _not good_ way. The glare he got from her could’ve rivalled one from even a menopausal Eabis. And that was saying something.

Quickly re-pocketing the medication, the Doctor shrunk under her gaze. “Uh… Hi?” he said sheepishly.

No words came from her despite his clear show of submission. Instead, fury rolled through their bond in waves and she looked at him with such contempt that he knew instantly she’d found out what he’d done. He wasn’t sure how she’d found out, but she had.

Standing up, Rose adjusted the robe around herself and, with her chin held high, strode past him into the corridor.

“Rose…Rose… listen…” he entreated, following her in a clear show of deference as they made their way back to the TARDIS, “I… It was… I had no choice… they… I thought…” he stammered as they arrived at the ship’s doors.

Rose ignored his pleas and strode purposefully into the ship and up the stairs. The Doctor entered behind her and watched as Rose made her way wordlessly to the console and began playing with the instruments.

“Er… what are you doing?” he hazarded, knowing he was asking for her wrath with the question.

“I’m going home,” she answered stoically, continuing to move around the console.

“Home?” he asked stupidly. _This_ was her home.

Rounding on him, her eyes flashed dangerously. “Yes. Home,” she said, daring him to utter anything in response.

Moving the console, keeping a wary eye on her the entire trip, he eyeballed her adjustments. “But… you’re…”

“That’s right, Doctor,” she dared. “You’re taking me back to Broadchurch,” she challenged. “And you’re taking me back right now.”

The Doctor stood for a moment without access to words. What did she mean? “You… you want to leave?” he asked, the full meaning of her demand only now sinking in.

Continuing to pace around the console, she finally looked up at him. “No. I don’t _want_ to leave. But…” she said, shaking her head, “What did you _think_ would happen?” she said, almost pleading. “Did you think that you could just… _defile_ me like they did on Gallifrey and that I’d just… take it?” she asked.

He looked down at his hands now, unable to meet her eyes. He’d asked for this reaction, and he knew it. It was every single thing he’d feared could happen when she found out what he’d done… but he’d still asked for it.

“Rose… I’m sorry,” he tried lamely.

Pursing her lips in aggravation, she said, “No. No, Doctor. You don’t just get to say you’re sorry and then everything can go back to normal,” she informed him, her voice rising. “You _drugged me_! And I can’t just go on and pretend that didn’t happen. How _dare_ you!” she said, almost yelling now. “You’re the man who promised to love me. Who promised to _protect_ me… not take advantage of me and manipulate me,” she said, nearly spitting out the words. “How do you think you’re any better than those other Time Lords who did the same?!” she demanded.

Shame of the very deepest sort filled him. Since the beginning of their relationship she’d trusted him to let her make her own decisions. He’d understood from the outset that it was that very fact that made him different from his twin in the other universe. Even knowing that, though, he’d still managed to take away her autonomy. He’d taken from her what he’d silently vowed he wouldn’t. He’d taken away her right to choose her own fate. And that made him just as bad as those bastards on Gallifrey.

“I want to go back to Earth,” she said, hugging herself. She looked so small… so… violated. He wanted to kick himself! How could he have done this to her?

“Rose… please… there’s no excuse… I know that. But… I _am_ sorry. I’m _so sorry,_ ” he began, ready to beg if that’s what it took. He’d screwed up. Monumentally. But he couldn’t let her go. He _needed_ her. Like air. He couldn’t live without her.

“No, Doctor. I… I need some time,” she said, looking down at her hands anxiously. “I have to think…” she finished.

His hearts stopped. She had to think. She had to _decide_. That’s what she was going to do. But she didn't understand. Not _really_.

“Rose… please…” he began.

Slamming her fist onto the console, Rose glared at him. “I want to go _home_. Now _take me back to Broadchurch_ ,” she demanded, her eyes never leaving his.

She was serious. So, so very serious.

The Doctor’s hearts jumped into his throat. But… she couldn’t leave him. Literally! If she left…

Her expression softened a bit with her next words. “I’m not sayin’ this is _it_ , Doctor. I’m just sayin’ that I need some time to myself, yeah?” she said, her eyes telling him how very seriously she was taking this. “I may come back. I may not. But right now, unless you take me back home… I can guarantee you’ll lose me forever,” she warned.

Her words struck him like a knife him his chest.

Solemnly, he made his way around the console and reset the destination. One day after they’d left Broadchurch. Her place.

Once the coordinates were set, Rose turned on her heel and strode down the corridor leaving him standing alone in the control room. She was leaving him. _Leaving_. His hearts ached at the thought. He knew she couldn’t properly _leave_ him… not now that they were bonded… but the idea that she wanted to made him sick.

It occurred to him then that Rose may not completely understand the significance of their bond. He’d tried to explain it to her before, but had may not have impressed enough the physical ramifications of… er… infidelity. Gods knew he certainly hadn’t considered that he’d ever be faced with _needing_ to tell her. A longing ache filled him with the thought, making him want to curl up into a ball on the floor.

The TARDIS landed with a sad thump, jolting him from his sadness. Rose emerged seconds later having gathered some of her belongings together. Her expression was a study in determination and through their link all the Doctor could feel was justified anger and something akin to disappointment. In him.

All that was left was for her to exit through those doors. And all he had to do was stand in her way. But that wasn’t going to happen. Because he deserved what was coming to him. What he didn’t deserve was her. He knew that much. What he did need to do, though, was explain more about their bond. She needed to know. As much as avoidance was his favourite way of dealing with things, this particular issue couldn’t be skirted. “Rose… I have to tell you… ” he started before she turned to stare straight at him, interrupting him.

“No, Doctor. _I_ have something to tell _you_ ,” she said, her voice strong and resolute. “I need time. Maybe lots of it. Don’t try to contact me for a while,” she instructed, walking to the doors. “I have the cell you gave me. I’ll call you… when I’m ready to talk,” she said, pausing a moment before turning and pushing the door open.

“Rose!” the Doctor called before she walked out. Turning, she looked at him, her eyes wary and guarded. “I… I’m…” he started, suddenly at a loss.

Rose’s eyes remained veiled of emotion. “I know, Doctor,” she said solemnly. “You’re sorry. I know.” Turning away again, she said, “I… I’ll call you.” Then she walked through the doors and out of his life.  



	7. Chapter 7

Author's Notes:

In which the Doctor has a revelation...

This chapter originally moved the story on far too quickly without enough emotional context and it didn't make sense, so I've revised it and I'm happier now. It's a shorter chapter, but it didn't flow well into the next so I kept it on its own.

Hope you like!

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### Identity Theft - Chapter 7: Voices

 

_“Rose!” the Doctor called before she walked out. Turning, she looked at him, her eyes wary and guarded. “I… I’m…” he started, suddenly at a loss._

Rose’s eyes remained veiled of emotion. “I know, Doctor,” she said solemnly. “You’re sorry. I know.” Turning away again, she said, “I… I’ll call you.” Then she walked through the doors and out of his life.

 

Rose replayed those last moments on the TARDIS over and over in her mind as she tossed and turned in her bed. Sleep had been understandably eluding her and thoughts of the Doctor and what he’d done had been festering in its place.

He’d violated her. Her body and her mind. How _dare_ he? They were married! _Bonded_ for pities sake! Didn’t that mean anything to him? _Evidently it means you’re mere property to him,_ the rational voice inside her said evenly. _He’s taken you - in body and in mind - and now he assumes you’re his for plundering in whatever way he sees fit._

The level of betrayal it took… she was floored. _He doesn’t value you at all as a true equal, you know. He sees you as an interesting experiment… something to keep him occupied when he’s not busy making himself look important._ Hot tears rose to her eyes with the thought. Was that all she was to him?

Laying back, staring at the ceiling in the darkened room, she tried to quell the pain in her hearts. Sure, he’d seemed concerned for her, but his betrayal really _hurt_. She was surprised by the ferocity of her reaction to it, though. He’d been driving her mad lately with his overprotective ‘I know better’ attitude, it was true, but she was beyond livid about this and even _she_ recognized how out of proportion her reaction was. _You have every right to be livid, though,_ her mind told her. _He took your trust in him and used it against you. He assumes you’ve no mind of your own. That you’ll just forget this all in a day. Well, that’s where he’s wrong. He doesn’t deserve to have you back. After all you’ve done for him, THIS is how he treats you._

It was true. Once again, hot tears dripped from the corner of her eyes to spill down into her hair. _You deserve better. You deserve someone who will value you. Someone who will worship you as you deserve,_ her mind told her. Worship? She hardly thought she was worth _worshipping_.

_That’s where you’re wrong, my dear girl. And he will never ever treat you as you should be treated. He will use you to his own ends. That’s what he does. To the casual observer he appears to be the saviour. The one who liberates worlds. The one who makes people_ better _. In reality… well… you’re living it._ This _is what he does to the people who care for him,_ the voice said.

The voice? Oh my god. She was going mad. Squeezing her eyes shut, she grabbed fistfulls of hair in her hands. She was hearing bloody _voices_ now! What the hell was _wrong_ with her?!

Curling into a ball on her side, she tried to silence her thoughts. She needed somewhere in her mind she could go to find peace. A spot like the TARDIS had once occupied but didn’t any longer. A surge of regret played through her with the thought. She’d told the ship to leave her alone. To get out of her head. Now that spot in her mind was sitting empty and she once again felt the sting of loneliness. She was truly alone.

As she let her mind linger in the spot that had once been lived in by the Doctor’s ship, she felt a warmth spring up unbidden from another place in her mind. For a moment she thought it was their bond… but it wasn’t. It wasn’t the Doctor.

Allowing herself to search for it, she found the comforting pulse coming from a place close to the bond she and the Doctor shared. It was sending waves of colourful warm pleasant vibes through her mind, settling her. Helping her find peace.

Relief pulsed through her. It felt glorious and was such a welcome change to the anxiety and sadness she’d been feeling. Closing her eyes, she let herself bask in it. The relieving trickle of warm comfort filtered through her mind and was lulling her toward relaxation. A feeling of happiness stole over her. She wasn’t sure why, but she wasn’t going to fight it. This was the best she’d felt in days.

She was finally teetering on the edge of sleep when she became aware of soft hands caressing her back. Turning onto her stomach in what must be her dream, the ghost hands moved unhurriedly and gradually became less tentative as they played over the smooth planes of her back. She felt herself relaxing further as they kneaded and worked the taut muscles, making her release a small groan. She was thoroughly loose when the hands began to work their way down to massage the top of her buttocks and then gently cup her bottom. Arousal spiralled through her with the sensual touch, and she opened her legs to allow access for the man in her dream.

A soft chuckle echoed in her mind then. “Mine,” a man’s voice said, as she simultaneously felt strong hands spread her legs further and a masculine shadow pass over her mind. “You will be mine.”

The bristling surprise of hearing that man’s voice in her dream jogged her and made her wake with a start, sending her shooting up and off the bed in a flash. Her hearts were pounding and anxiety shot through her veins. She knew that voice. It was associated with pain and very unwanted memories. What was most disturbing though, were the feelings of unbridled _longing_ that erupted on hearing it. Longing and _need_.

Taking a deep breath, she tried to tamp down those very real feelings that weren’t yet diminished in the slightest. It was just a dream. That’s all it was.

Finally as her breathing returned to something close to normal, she slowly climbed back into her bed, sighing. Her heart rates were finally slowing down, thank God, but for some reason she just couldn’t shake the emptiness her dream had left her with. It was probably all the anxiety she’d been harbouring because of the Doctor. She was starting to lose it! Hearing voices, having anxiety attacks… she was going mad! All thanks to the man she’d once trusted with her life. She shook her head. In reality, he was so far from being the one who deserved that trust. And now the trust that she’d mistakenly placed in him could very well be the death of her.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

 

The Doctor sat glumly in the control room, watching the rotor pulse up and down. He’d left Rose a little while ago in Broadchurch and the space she left behind was palpable. Time Lords didn’t die from being parted from their bondmate, but it was absolutely not comfortable. And the farther the bondmate was in geography and time, the more uncomfortable the feeling got.

The Doctor had planned to stay in the same time he’d left Rose. He figured if it just let the TARDIS hover somewhere near the moon it would be close enough to negate the strain on their bond. Surely she’d call soon? Granted… it’d only been an two hours thirty-seven minutes… she may need more than that.

A more insightful part of his brain kicked in the very reasonable assertion that with the level of anger she’d been generating earlier, it was more likely going to be weeks before she called. _If_ she called.

Pulling his hands down his face, he leaned back in the jump seat and stared at the ceiling. In the back of his mind, he could still feel Rose’s presence. Completely to be expected and somewhat comforting, even given the circumstances. Her mind had been filled with roiling emotions since he dropped her off, not unlike those she’d been feeling the last few days since Gallifrey.

He was about to get up to head to the galley when a very new feeling filled him from her corner of his mind. It was peace. Oh… there was still longing… but the overriding feeling was relief, peace and… happiness.

Happiness? Was she _that_ relieved to be away from him? A deep gloom threatened to drown him then. She was actually _happy_. He hadn’t felt that from her since before Gallifrey. But this time she wasn’t happy because of him… of _that_ he was sure.

It was then that the peaceful bliss radiating from Rose elevated to something… more. A dizzying spiral of arousal poured through their bond sending a bolt of longing through him like he’d felt the other day before he’d found her in the pool. The Doctor gasped with the onslaught. The elation Rose was feeling… it wasn’t orgasmic… yet… but it was…

And then it quickly dulled and a thrill of anxiety shot through their bond. The Doctor took a deep breath, and forcibly tamped down his body’s overwhelming desire to jump up and pilot the TARDIS straight back to earth. What the hell was going on in her mind? He ached to be with her at a level that made him feel the air had been evacuated from the room. He could sense that she wasn’t in any life threatening danger, but she was clearly going through something he felt he needed to be a part of. In fact, everything she went through he knew he desperately wanted to be a part of.

Gods. Why had he done it? He could’ve… no… he _should’ve_ convinced her to let him examine her. What he’d done was inexcusable and he didn’t blame her for being beyond furious with him. He’d hoped… desperately so… that she might understand, but when she didn’t… he wasn’t truly surprised. Heartbroken… but not surprised.

He knew he should leave well enough alone, but his hearts and mind were desperate for her. He needed to leave her on her own for a bit. He understood that. But it was so uncomfortable being apart from her… physically and definitely emotionally. If he couldn’t be with her physically, he could maybe at least just get some solace by hovering near their bond in his mind. He wouldn’t violate her privacy by delving into it, but… he needed to feel her.

Reaching back further to try to get closer to her through their mental connection without actually losing himself in it, he encountered a spiked tumble of rough, angled edges, making it difficult for him to access it any further. Alarms rose in his mind. He tried once again to play through the usually permeable membrane between his awareness and hers, but he was once again booted squarely back by a bumpy… almost _thorny_... thicker shield. He could still feel her behind it, but it was like the gauze he’d been feeling between them since Gallifrey had tripled and it was being fortified by a spiky, rough mesh from the other side.

This wasn’t something she could’ve done on her own. It wasn’t. She was a very intelligent girl… brilliant, even. But this… this would require fortification at a level that was all but unheard of. To be able to obstruct a bondmate from accessing a bond… it was nearly impossible. There were very good reasons Time Lords rarely bonded anymore, and one of them was for that very reason. A bond was just that. It cemented two minds together for the length of their existence. To obstruct one… it would take intervention.

Intervention.

Gods. Gallifrey. They’d done it to her on Gallifrey. Their bond had been purposefully plundered by those bastards. How, he wasn’t sure. It was likely something chemical. But then, the scans on Vuoblulus Prime should’ve picked it up. Then again, if it _was_ chemical, it would have to have been hidden somehow so he wouldn’t find it. Maxil and the Master would’ve known he would’ve looked for something wrong so they would’ve made it very difficult to find.

Growling, the Doctor jumped to the console. He wasn’t excited to be far from Rose at the moment, but he knew now he had no choice. He had to find out what they’d done to her so he could reverse it, and the only way he was going to be able to do that was to go back to where the crime had been committed. Gallifrey.  



	8. Chapter 8

Author's Notes:

Our poor Rose has a lot to face this chapter Ive tried not to be TOO evil!

And Jacks back! Definitely a favourite character of mine, obviously, and Ive had fun playing him differently a bit in this universe.

Enjoy!  


****

### Identity Theft - Chapter 8: Mine

Jack had been lunching with a good looking colleague… well… he supposed ‘colleague’ was a rather loose term. So was ‘good looking’, really, he supposed, though he personally had nothing against bald men.

He’d been negotiating with the head of Torchwood… one Pete Tyler… regarding heading a branch of their organization in Cardiff. He’d been told by a little bird that they were considering replacing their current team leader there. Something about having found illegal drugs in the current team leader’s possession… hmmm. Wonder _what_ had gotten into that guy. Such an upstanding citizen before then, he’d heard. Tsk, tsk. Anyhow… he _happened_ to have been in just the right place at he just the right time, and now he and Pete were discussing terms. Funny how life worked sometimes.

He hadn’t really planned to end up back on earth, actually. It just sort of… happened. In an effort to lay low for a while in terms of his ‘time jumping’ activities, he’d been living on a rather backward little planet in the Orla system for the last year. Finally, though, boredom won out and he thought maybe he could lay low on earth for a while. He’d always liked the planet, after all. Then this golden opportunity presented itself, and… well, here he was. It would give him something to do beside gamble and drink, and it might even do some good. Not that that was his biggest criteria for a perfect job, but if it happened to not hurt anyone, he had to say the idea was growing on him.

Funny how that incident a year ago with Rose Tyler had really impacted him. More than he’d ever admit to anyone out loud. He’d once vowed that he would never put others before himself again. All that had ever done was end badly. But for her… well… for some reason his vow went sailing out the window and he’d done exactly that. He’d saved her and put himself in harms way.

He’d died, of course, as was to be expected. Luckily, the Master didn’t know about his little trick, and trundled off in his TARDIS before he came to… spluttering and gasping in massive gulps of air. God he hated dying. It _hurt_.

He’d scrawled a message to the blonde before taking off… another first for him, really. Anyhow… she’d wormed her way into his heart(s) and he was quite amazed still at what an impact she still had on him.

Even now she was still making herself part of his life. It turned out that Pete’s surname was the same as his blonde saviour, and it wasn’t a mere coincidence, as he’d assumed. He mentioned casually that he’d met a ‘Tyler’ in Broachurch once, and Pete eyed him suspiciously. “Would that be ‘Rose Tyler’?” he’d asked. It turned out that Rose was his daughter. Would wonders never cease? “Why do I get the feeling I don’t really want to know how you know my daughter?” Pete had said, eyebrows raised.

“Er… yeah. Probably best to let Rose tell you about that,” Jack had confirmed, trying not to look too guilty. Hopefully when she spoke with her Dad she’d leave out the bit where he’d kidnapped her.

It was the next morning when his cell phone rang on the bedside table. A particularly good looking young man… (Sean… or Shane, was it?) mumbled sleepily beside him, his jet black hair tousled sexily on against the white of the pillowcase. Memories of the night before danced through his mind, making him wake up in more ways than one.

Once again, though, his phone rang insistently on the night stand. Sighing, he turned over and picked it up. “Harkness,” he answered, turning to eye the attractive sleeping male beside him again as he spoke.

“Jack?” a woman’s voice said.

“Yes,” he said. “That’s me. Who’s this?” he said, laying back against his pillow.

“Jack! It’s Rose!” she said, her voice happy and excited.

“Rose?” he asked, very surprised to hear her voice. The last time they’d met, he’d been holding her hostage. Of course, he’d redeemed himself a bit by helping her and the Doctor escape, but that still didn’t change the fact he’d gotten her in the mess in the first place.

“Yeah! It’s me. I hope you don’t mind… my Dad… he mentioned he spoke with you and… well, I asked for your number. He didn’t want to give it to me, but… well, I can be pretty persuasive,” she said, a smile in her voice.

Jack smiled. She sure could, he remembered. “So I recall,” he agreed, remembering her determination and decidedly attractive assertive streak. “But listen, Rose… I wanted to say… well, you know… about what happened…” he started.

“No, Jack. It’s alright. I was really stupid just assuming things would be the same in my universe and this one for you. But I know you’re a good man, Jack. In any universe, yeah? And you proved it by helping us,” she said seriously.

Jack felt a lump forming in his throat. He really wasn’t a good man. Not really. But he wasn’t about to argue with her. She saw good in him, and he’d actually lived up to her expectation a bit the last time they’d met. All around, he’d been amazed that he had, even if she seemed to simply expect that he’d choose the high road the whole time. “Thanks, Rosie,” he said softly.

“You’re always welcome, Jack. Anyway… enough about that,” Rose announced, obviously wanting to relieve him of the topic. “I, er… I was just… I thought maybe I could see you? It’s been… well, it’s been a few weeks for me. How about you?” she asked. It was odd how other experienced time travellers knew to ask such questions.

“A year. I’ve been… off world. But… where’s the Doc? I assume he didn’t suggest meeting up with me?” he asked, knowing full well the Doctor would rather smother him with a feather pillow than meet him again in person.

The other end of the line was silent for a moment before Rose said, “He’s not here. We’ve… we’ve had a falling out,” she said, both anger and sadness permeating her voice.

“Oh. I’m sorry, Rosie,” he said, letting that sink in. She’d been so… devoted to him last time he’d seen her. It must’ve been _some_ falling out. “Uh… sure. I’d love to see you. Where are you?” he asked.

“I’m still in Broadchurch. The Doctor dropped me here. Can you meet me here? At my place?” she suggested. “I make a mean chicken casserole...” she offered.

Jack smiled. God. It had been so long since someone actually cooked for him. “Sure, Rosie. I’d love that. Tonight?”

“Yeah - that’d be great. See you then,” she said, sounding relieved.

“See you then,” he agreed before ringing off. Pocketing his phone, he considered the conversation he’d just had. God. What kind of idiot would let Rose go? He scoffed, then. The Doctor, that’s who, he answered himself. If anyone was fool enough, it would be him. The stupid git had no idea how good he had it. If Rose had ever chosen him, he’d never let her go. He knew that much. And anyone who would, was a complete imbecile.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

Jack allowed himself one quick jaunt with his vortex manipulator to get to Rose’s place. Standard travel during this period took SO long. Knocking on the door, he waited for a moment before it opened and he found himself with his arms full of blonde female. Not exactly something he’d turn down at the best of times, but with Rose… well, as he’d considered before… he’d be an idiot not to take advantage. Wrapping her in his arms, she almost melted into him.

“Oh, Jack. I’m so glad you’re here,” she said earnestly, her voice muffled by his coat as she squeezed herself against him.

“Glad to be here,” he smiled, hugging her back just as intensely. “But that doesn’t sound like the happiest welcome I’ve ever had,” he said, pulling back to look at her.

She looked… well, she looked _gorgeous_ , but besides that, she looked… tired. Sad. Looking up at him with an expression that carried anger and pain all at once, she said, “He… he drugged me, Jack. He drugged me, and then…” she trailed off, pain evident in her eyes.

Jack felt bile rising in his throat. She’d told him that she and the Doc were separated, but he had no idea… he’d never have thought… “What did he do, Rose?” anger more than permeating his voice.

Dropping her head to study the floor, she said softly, “I… I felt so _violated_ , Jack,” she said, not quite answering his question. Was she too ashamed to talk about it? Had he hurt her that badly?! Anger swelled in him. That _prick_!

“We had a fight… after… and, well, I told him to bring me home,” she said, her voice small.

Stepping into her again, he wrapped his arms around her protectively. That fucking bastard. He supposed he shouldn’t be surprised. He’d used his companions before… but this… this was unforgivable. As he held her he felt her small frame begin to shake. She was crying. Mumbling calming words and stroking her back, he leaned his head to further nestle her against him. If he had his way, no one would hurt her again.

“I’m sorry,” she said after her tears slowed. “I… I didn’t want to lay this on you, but… I just needed to talk to someone. And… I know you understand. You’ve been with him. You know what he’s like,” she said, her watery eyes looking up at him. He sure did. He knew exactly what he was like. This, though… if he’d been taking advantage of her like he imagined from what she’d said… this was beyond what he’d have expected, even from that prat.

Suddenly realizing they were still standing at the door, Rose let out a little watery laugh. “Look at me… you haven’t even stepped inside and I’m blubbering all over you,” she said. “Come in, Jack,” she said, taking his hand and leading him into the living room. “Can I get you something?” she asked. “A glass of wine?”

Smiling, he said, “Sure, Rosie… but I think you need one more than I do,” he said.

Giving him a sad smile, she said, “Yeah. Just give me a mo, yeah?” before she disappeared into the kitchen. The gentle ‘cling’ of glasses reached his ears as he considered what she’d said. Anger once again filled him. Of course the Doctor hadn’t deserved her… that was a given. But to do this… to take her naive trust and just… _use her_.

Rose emerged from the kitchen with two full glasses of wine and handed one to him. Sitting close beside him, she said a subdued, “Cheers,” and they clinked glasses before each taking a sip. He watched her roll the wine around in her mouth, her full lips puckering as she tasted the smooth tartness of the wine. It wasn’t until a wide smile found her lips that he came back to himself. He’d been caught staring. Oh well. He’d never pretended not to find her attractive. He smiled back.

“I missed you, Jack,” she said, her voice now low and serious.

The pull of arousal rose in him as she gazed almost lovingly at him with those whiskey coloured eyes. God she was gorgeous. The rational side of him knew it was a bad idea to try to take advantage of her in this vulnerable state, but his manhood had different ideas. Leaning in, he watched her expression change to confusion… but not anger, he noticed… before he pressed his lips to hers. For a moment she didn’t move… obviously a bit surprised by his overture. Within moments, though, she began to respond, her lips moving smoothly against his.

Suddenly, she pulled back. Letting out a pained yelp, she grabbed her head in her hands and squeezed her eyes shut. “Ah! God!” she nearly sobbed.

“What! What is it?!” he demanded, worried and surprised by her reaction. He’d had women swoon before, but this was new.

“I… I’m not sure,” she said, pained and confused, “... but… I think… Oh, God. I think… it’s the bond,” she finished.

A thrill of fury went through him. A _bond_! That bastard had _bonded_ with her! The Doctor _knew_ what that meant. She was _his_. Irrevocably _his_ for the span of her life, as long as he lived. Had that been what he’d done while she was drugged?!

“Rose,” he started, not sure what to say. How could he console her now? She’d allowed him to kiss her. She’d accepted his advance. Oh, God. She didn’t know. She didn’t know what it meant to be bonded. Not really. “Rose… did he explain… about the fidelity involved with being bonded?” he asked, keeping his voice purposefully even and calm.

Rose looked back at him, her expression open and confused. God. He _hadn’t_. Of _course_ he hadn’t. Taking both of her hands in his, he said, “When Time Lords bond, they can’t be with anyone else. Not as long as both parties are alive. To do so… well… you felt what happened. And that was just a _kiss_ , Rose. To be unfaithful to a bondmate would mean…” he swallowed. God… he fucking hated the man who had done this to her. “It would probably mean death. And not regeneration.”

Rose’s eyes went wide and she gasped in a breath. That bloody git. How could he have done this to her? “But… that means…” she trailed off, clearly taking in the significance of what he’d said. Finally looking back up at him, she said, almost pleading, “Jack… what am I gonna do?”

His heart and a half nearly broke then. There was nothing she _could_ do, short of killing the Doctor, which he knew she’d never agree to. She was well and truly stuck. A bond was forever, as far as he knew. And he’d taken time to study all he could about Time Lords - biology, physiology, culture. If he was gonna become one, he knew he’d better find out all he could about them. And from what he’d learned, a bond was unbreakable. “I… I don’t know. I’m sorry,” he said. And he truly was.

Rose looked stricken. Poor thing. What a fucking horrid thing to have to face. Eternity alone or with a man who’d violated you. He couldn’t imagine it. It sickened him that this incredible woman would have to suffer for eternity now because the Doctor had been so selfish and irresponsible.

“Jack… I think… I don’t think I can do this,” she admitted, fresh tears springing into her eyes. “I can’t go on like this… the rest of my lives! I’ll be stuck with him… in my head. I’ll be alone, but…” she trailed off.

A strong sense of protectiveness for this woman surged in him. “No you won’t, Rose. We’ll figure out something,” he said, bringing his thumb up to stroke her cheek. And he meant it.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

Rose had left Jack on the couch downstairs after an evening of hugs and tears. The revelation of the physical truth of her bond with the Doctor had taken her aback. She knew… well, the Doctor had told her that they’d be ‘stuck’ with each other, but she hadn’t really understood the complexity of being married to him that way. She would _die_. The truth of it was tearing her apart. How could he have done this to her? Just… left her to find this out on her own?

_It’s because he’s never valued you. Not really. Not like_ I _would,_ the voice in her mind said seductively.

For a moment the last sentence rolled around in her head. ‘Not like _I_ would. What… what did that mean?

_You know what it means, Rose. Deep down you_ know. And deep down she did. She really did. But… it was impossible. How… how…

_How? This is how, Rose…_ she heard in her mind as sleep suddenly reached up and pulled her under.

She was on a beach. No. Not just _a_ beach. _The_ beach. Dårlig Ulv Stranden. Bad Wolf Bay. In the distance a figure approached and she felt her hearts leap up into her throat. Oh God. It was _him_. Excitement bounded through her along with a sliver of fear at the thought of being with him. Really being with him. The tendril of dread that threaded it’s way through her excitement played a song of warning through her mind.

Though he was still a distance away, she could hear him as if he were standing right before her. “You’ve been inside me since we met in that quaint little town. I was a bit of a brute, I’ll admit. But somehow… somehow you left a bit of yourself with me that day, Rose. And I’ve not been able to think of anyone but you since then. I’ve been consumed with thoughts of you and I’m willing to bet you’ve thought of me as well. Of my hands caressing you… taking you away from the thoughtless, idiocy that is the Doctor.”

Every syllable he uttered felt as if it ironed out any worry or question. His words rang true in a way no one else’s ever had. He was telling her as it was. The truth. The only truth. She knew it like she knew she was a living, breathing, sentient being.

“That’s right, my love. You _know_ that what I say is fact. Your mind knows it. There are those who would tell you I’m to be feared. To be reviled. But you know the truth, don’t you, love? This is me. What you see before you. What you _feel_ around you. What you hear in your mind. I am who you should be with, Rose. The Doctor doesn’t deserve you. I do.”

“I know,” she heard herself reply, almost as if the words were climbing from her throat before she had a chance to formulate them. And as she said them, she didn’t question them. He was right. He deserved what she had to give and he was the one she needed to spend her life with.

The attractive blonde man now stood directly before her, his eyes smouldering. “I once told you that I am your master, Rose. Well… I am. I am, because that is what you want me to be. Your Master.”

Now knowing without any doubt it was true, she readily agreed. “Yes. You’re mine. My Master,” she reiterated, longing to reach out and touch him. The yearning she’d been feeling so acutely for the last couple of days surged then and nearly doubled her over. The emptiness… the _longing_ was literally leaving her aching so strongly, that she felt she could barely breathe.

“My poor, poor girl,” the Master said lowly, bringing his hand to caress the side of her face. His touch was like magic. With piercing relief, the cloying void in her seemed to be at least half filled and waves of soothing balm played over her aching mind. Her eyes slipped shut and her skin tingled as he played his fingers along her face to trail down her neck to skim across her clavicle. It felt as if he was with her… really touching her. His other arm suddenly reached around her then to grasp her tightly to him and she let out a breathy gasp as his fingers dug into the flesh of her back, which was suddenly bare. Her whole torso was bare now, she realized, as her naked breasts pressed up against his still clothed chest. She knew she should be embarrassed… maybe even violated… but she wasn’t. At all. This was how it was supposed to be. “You just want to be free of him. You want someone who will appreciate you… take you to new heights,” he said, brushing his lips against the smooth skin of her neck as he whispered the words. A warm caress filtered through her mind and a moan escaped her. “Do you feel me there, Rose?” he asked. “In your mind… where I belong?”

She nodded, a gasped breath escaping her lips. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the feeling of him there, nestled in his own corner of her mind. His presence sent splays of colour through her head.

“You feel _him_ too, though, don’t you?” he said, disdain filling his voice.

Nodding again, once again aware that an unwanted entity was housing itself in her mind, she grimaced. “We can’t have him there, Rose. With him there, we can never be together. Not physically like we should be,” he said, emphasizing his statement by digging his fingers a bit more deeply into the flesh of her back. “That bond… it’s a violation of you and it’s an affront to _me_. It needs to be _gone_.”

“But… what can I do?” she asked, her voice betraying the panic she was suddenly feeling. She couldn’t live like this! How was she going to be able to be with the one she _needed_ if her mind was held hostage by a man who could care less about her well being?

“Fret not, my dear. I’ve walled it off a bit for now… but I have a plan that will see it gone. And in the end, you’ll be mine. Completely mine, as you should be. Do you understand?”

Relief pounded through her. He was going to help her get rid of the shackles that held her mind to another man so she could be with him as he’d said she should.

Once again, a thread of reason tried to permeate through the ever deepening waters her free thoughts were being held down by. The whisper of reason was trying to tell her just that fact. Trying to alert her to the fact she wasn’t free. A part of her consciousness… her own true self was being weighed down just like her body had been the other day in the pool. The Master… he was keeping her free will pressed down, unable to surface. What she was… what she believed… those things were being lulled into submission by his caressing words and mental touches. And while she knew it… had suspected something was happening to her… she’d been so reticent to even consider that she was being manipulated. But it had been so much more than that, hadn’t it? So much. He controlled her will now. Deep down, in these deep, airless depths, she knew it. The weight of his will was slowly crushing her own out of existence. And now… now…

“Now you need to stop thinking so much,” the man standing before her said lowly, taking her face in his hand and pulling her to meet his lips.

And with that, her mind went blissfully blank.  



	9. Chapter 9

Author's Notes:

Wow. Very bad riddle: How many rewrites does it take before the writer crosses the digital road to post a single chapter? Too bloody many, thats how many! Ha!

(The funniest part is that I just read my sister my incredibly witty attempt at a joke, and she said - I love your mix of riddles! I said What mix of riddles? She said, Im glad youre a writer and not a comedian.)

There is definitely some deep hatred out there for the Master understandably and I dont anticipate anyone finding deep love for the man after this chapter, either. Again understandably!  


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### Identity Theft - Chapter 9: Yearning

Rose woke the next morning feeling like her mind was in pieces. The man she needed with a ferocity that made her ache… the one she felt bereft without… he might never be able to really be with her. But he’d told her he had a plan. A way to save her. Hanging on to that promise, she tried to calm herself. He was still in her mind, thankfully. The Master was still living in her mind… she could feel him there… strong and sure… but so far. So very distant. She needed him _here_. The intensity of the feeling… the _need_ for him... was beyond rational, a tiny part of her screamed from very deep down. Her thoughts seemed to be consumed by her desire for him and it actually _hurt_... the ache of his absence.

And yet, in another corner of her mind, another spot cried for her attention. Yearning played from that corner of her brain as well, and it sent out waves of need. The Doctor. She needed him as well. She could feel it down to her very core.

A wisp of will found it’s way into her waking thoughts and for a moment she tried to hang onto it. Her will. Her own free will. Grabbing at it with all her might, she hung on for dear life. _Call the Doctor! Call him! Tell him!_ she thought fiercely, trying to hang onto the errant thought before it was squashed by her betraying mind.

It took every ounce of will she had to reach for her phone. Finding the Doctor’s number, she pressed the connect button. But that’s when the lion woke. And it was furious. What the HELL was she doing? The Doctor had her bloody brainwashed, for God’s sake! She was going to just… call him and… what? Forgive him? For fuck’s sake! He’d violated her trust. How could she just… forgive that? She couldn’t. She _wouldn’t_.

“Rose?” the Doctor’s worried voice said into her ear. Anger filled her on hearing his bloody voice. He sounded _worried_? How _dare_ he?! _HE_ had no right to feel anything for her. He’d been the one who’d defiled her! He’d drugged her and manipulated her and now he had the raw nerve to pretend he _cared_!

Fury now coursed through her, sparked by a fire she knew somewhere deep down wasn’t hers. “I just wanted to tell you,” she heard herself say, “that I’ve decided. I can’t see you again, Doctor. Never. I can’t accept what you did to me. No one… NO ONE can treat me like that. You don’t _own me_! she seethed.

“Rose!” the Doctor’s voice urgently spluttered, “This _isn’t you_. You’re being controlled Rose. I don’t know how… but I know this isn’t you. Fight it, Rose. I need you to fight it!” he urged.

With his words a tiny trickle of doubt tried to once again take hold. “Doctor… I…” she said, her own words feeling strangled in her throat.

“You can do it, love. I know you can!” the Doctor encouraged.

 _Love!?! This bloody cretin doesn’t know the meaning of the word! The only love you’ll feel from now on will come from_ me _, Rose. That is the way it will be from now on. You. Are. Mine._

The conflicting feelings raging within her were confused even further by the insistent words the Master pressed into her mind. She _belonged_ to someone?

 _Yes you do, my dear. You belong to me. Your heart, your thoughts… your very soul. It is mine. You do what I say because you are mine. I OWN you!_ the Master’s voice commanded with such force she clasped her hand to the side of her head. The strength of his insistence was nearly overwhelming. Nearly.

“I...” she said softly into the phone. “I can’t… I… I have to go. Good-bye, Doctor.”

Placing the phone down onto the nightstand, a satisfied contentedness filled her from where the Master resided in her mind. _You did what had to be done, my love,_ he cooed. _We will soon be together. I will see to it. And you and I will become one as we should be,_ he promised.

With his words the lonely emptiness began to seep back in. Squeezing her eyes shut, she willed the feeling to go away. She knew he was right. Her mind insisted he was. But… but why? Why was he right? Confused thoughts raced through her mind, trying to create reason from what seemed so unreasonable. Cloying loneliness filled her and while she desperately craved the man who’d promised to release her from the bond that chained her to a man she didn’t love ( _You do!_ ) an insistent part of her seemed to be trying to suggest otherwise.

 _That’s right!_ the entreating small voice said from somewhere buried very deep. Very very deep now. _You need to stop him! You need to find YOU!_ her own consciousness insisted. _Concentrate! DO it!_ her own will demanded.

With that, she focused all her available energy into blocking the connection between herself and the man who’d most recently made her a slave yet again.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

The Doctor had been in the vortex on his way to Gallifrey when he received her call. Her voice had been so full of malice at the outset, but then he’d heard _her_. She’d tried to break through. He could _feel_ it. Every single cell in him cried out to go her. To hold her hand and help her fight it. He knew, though, that he had to find out how the control had been placed on her. How they’d manipulated their bond. Otherwise he’d never be able to fix it… not completely. And that was _not_ an option.

Pacing back and forth in the console room, he silently fumed as he impatiently waited to receive the clearance needed to land on Gallifrey. Bloody bureaucrats! Of course, he understood the need for security. There were many worlds that harboured resentment for his people. Still. They _knew_ he was one of their own.

Finally a clearance code was received and he landed with an impatient thump on the specified landing site. Taking a deep breath, he readied himself. This was going to be a decidedly unpleasant conversation. Chancellor Spandrell had been supportive, but he didn’t doubt he’d find this latest accusation quite preposterous. Meddling with a bond… it was tantamount to rape or kidnapping on his planet. Such a charge wouldn’t be taken lightly. He also knew, however, that the Chancellor was now quite wary of the Master. He hoped the man had taken his warning to hearts.

Steeling himself, he opened the door and stepped out.

And stopped dead.

“Doctor! What a surprise to see you so willingly stepping onto Gallifreyan soil,” the Master said knowingly, standing before him smugly. Armed guards, a good eight or ten, surrounded him, their weapons trained on his chest.

“What?!” he said, astounded. “Where’s Chancellor Spandrell?” he demanded, his hands now in the air in deference to the weapons threatening him.

The Master laughed. “As if you don’t know,” he said. “He’s no longer with us, thanks to you,” the Master said, a sick glint in his eye.

“What?!” the Doctor barked. “I left him in one piece… one _healthy_ piece… after having warned him about decent in his ranks,” he said aiming his comment squarely at the Master. “The Master has been planning to overthrow the Chancellor for a while now… did you people know that?” he said, now addressing the armed guards.

A couple of the men looked a bit startled by the comment, but most stood stoically, weapons still aimed. The Master merely laughed, apparently amused at his attempt to sway the guards. “Oh, Doctor. Do you think these men are fools? The evidence is irrefutable. You killed the Chancellor. You were the last one to spend time with him and he was found dead not long after leaving your side,” the Master accused.

The Doctor was aghast. The Master had killed Spandrell. He’d known the man was capable of evil, but this… it would’ve been cold blooded murder. “Gods,” the word escaped him as he considered it. “You… you killed him,” he almost whispered, his eyes glued to the Master’s. “You killed him to take his position. To gain control,” he leveled.

The Master’s countenance changed immediately. “How _dare_ you accuse me of _treason_ , Doctor! And this coming from the man who actually _did it_!” the Master shouted. “You were angered by the treatment of your bondmate and you lashed out. You killed the Chancellor in cold blood and now you’re blaming me! In fact, I don’t doubt you came here just to seek revenge on me as well! First the Chancellor and now his successor! Well… your plans are changed, Doctor. You are going to be tried for murder. And you know the consequences of such a conviction. You’ll be locked away for the remainder of your regenerations. And I imagine your bondmate will languish wherever you’ve left her as well, seeing as you’ll never again be reunited,” he jabbed.

Before the Doctor could reply, the Master shouted, “Take him away!” Two of the guards quickly jumped at him and immediately forcibly dragged him out of the room, leaving the Master’s triumphant smirk imprinted in his mind’s eye.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

Jack woke the next morning to a completely silent house. Light streamed in from the living room window, warming his face as he lay on the couch, looking up at the ceiling. He’d spent the night on the couch at Rose’s place, not wanting to leave her alone after last night’s revelation. Of course, he’d have preferred to have had her nestled in his arms, but the situation was already uncomfortable enough for her without the awareness of the impossibility of ever having anything more happen…

Sighing, he sat up and rubbed his eyes. Might as well see what Rosie had in the kitchen. Despite Rose’s offer of food the night before they’d never gotten round to actually eating after the evening’s discussion and Jack had to admit he was famished.

Finding his way around the fridge and the cooker, Jack set to work making a rather impressive morning feast, if he did say so. Setting all the prepared food on a tray he’d found in the bottom of the pantry, he finished the presentation with two steaming cups of coffee and headed upstairs. He felt a bit badly about waking Rose… she probably could use the sleep… but he didn’t want to waste the food and frankly, he was a bit anxious to be in her company again. Call him a glutton for punishment.

Gently bumping the door open with his hip, he moved into the room sideways with the tray and called Rose’s name softly.

A curvy series of bumps in the middle of the bed rolled around and from the top of the sheets Rose’s blonde head poked out, one eye squinted closed and the other barely cracked open. “What time is it?” she asked wearily, (and adorably, he thought).

“It’s high time you get your incredibly pert behind out of bed, beautiful,” he sang cheerily. He knew damn well she probably felt anything _but_ cheery this morning, but he might as well try to lighten things up right from the outset, he figured.

Looking decidedly pained, assumedly from his early morning attentions, Rose rubbed her eyes and slowly sat up. One of the thin straps of her camisole slipped off her shoulder as she did so, pulling a corner of the fabric down slightly to reveal the top of her breast. Jack felt his body alert to the very real ‘femaleness’ that was emerging from under the sheets, and he had to purposely turn away so as not to stare. God… she was going to regenerate him before he even fully became a Time Lord at this rate.

“You brought me breakfast in bed?” she asked, obviously slowly coming to full awareness of the situation.

“Only the best for m’lady,” he said, turning to give her a lavish bow.

Rose gave him a small smile and looked at the full tray of food he’d placed before her on the bed. She seemed to be pondering it for some reason when her face scrunched into a painful grimace.

“Rose,” he said, immediately abandoning his playful attempt to cheer her. Moving quickly to the bedside, he took the tray away and sat beside her. “What is it? What’s wrong?” he said, studying her face.

“Jack…” she grunted, as if expending substantial effort, “I’m... I… my head… I just… it’s… I’ve got it dampened, but it’s… so much work,” she stammered.

“What? The bond, you mean? You’ve dampened it?” he asked, incredulous. She was dampening a bond all by herself? The idea wasn’t crazy, but the Doctor was much stronger than she was. If he was insisting their bond stay open, he couldn’t imagine her being able to fight him.

Suddenly she seemed to relax a bit. “There,” she said, panting a bit. “I think I’ve… I mean… he’s still there, but… it’s not so loud…” she shared, bringing her hand to her forehead.

“What’s he doing to you, Rosie? Is he hurting you?” he asked, stroking her hair.

“It’s… I… it’s not just the Doctor. It’s Koshei. The Master. He’s… he’s there too…” she said, now cradling her head in both her hands.

“What do you mean?” Jack asked, a spike of dread stabbing him in the gut.

“He’s there… not just the Doctor. I… they’re both there, and I have to get out, Jack,” she said, looking up a him, her eyes full of desperation.

Jack’s blood ran cold. The Master was somehow affecting her… hurting her. “What do you mean, ‘they’re both there’, Rose? Is the Master somehow communicating with you?” he asked, almost beside himself with the need to know.

“He’s… he’s connected to me. Somehow he’s connected to me too. In my head,” she said, tapping the side of her skull, as if to illustrate. “I’m pushing him down… he can’t… he’s…” she said, before her face contorted in concentration yet again.

“Rose… how can I help you? What can I do?” he asked, hovering over her, feeling helpless as he watched her fight against this unseen enemy.

After a moment, her eyes opened again and found his. There was a pain in her eyes that he would give anything to remedy. If he could rescue her from this he would, but he was truly powerless to help her and it was driving him mad.

“Jack…” she said quietly, “...would you stay with me? I… I don’t want to be alone right now,” she said, her voice filled with a combination of strength and fear.

His heart nearly broke with her request. “Of course, Rose. Anything.”

“Thanks,” she said, offering him a soft smile of gratitude.

Taking one of her hands in both of his he added, “I don’t know exactly how to help you yet,” he said, his voice full of confidence he didn’t quite feel, “but I swear I’ll find a way,” he promised.

 


	10. Chapter 10

Author's Notes:

Once again... huge huge thanks to all who are reading and commenting - it's always so very appreciated!

Enjoy!

###  **Identity Theft - Chapter 10: Theft**

The Doctor sat in his cell, his back against the smooth metal of the wall and his feet drawn up so his arms were draped over them. It had been hours since he’d been incarcerated and he’d had to listen to the taunting laughter of the lunatic he’d once called a friend. Even as they locked him in he’d shouted, demanding to see the full charges against him, demanding he be allowed to talk with the council. His insistence had been met with silence and had merely left him with a hoarse voice.

Now, sitting isolated in the small cell, he shook his head. He honestly hadn’t seen this coming. Clearly the Chancellor hadn’t either, the poor sod, he mused sadly. He had been a decent man… even for a politician.

Now… now the Master had control of the Gallifreyan military. The thought sent shivers down his spine. It wasn’t just Rose’s fate he was worried for now. The entire galaxy was at risk. And he knew he wasn’t just being paranoid. The Master was mad. Barking mad. And with the might of the Gallifreyan military behind him… who knew how far he could go. Too far. That’s how far.

Sitting, reflecting on the impossible situation he was faced with… stopping a madman from destroying the universe planet by planet… he knew he should be concentrating all his mental energy on that very problem. Instead, though, he found himself completely and utterly distracted by his bondmate’s situation. He knew he should be more terrified for the galaxy than for Rose, but even knowing that didn’t change how he felt. Rose was his priority, even if that was morally wrong. She needed him, and he needed her more than he needed to breathe. His goal was still to find out what that lunatic had done to his bondmate so he could fix it. Then he’d worry about the universe. Only then he’d be able to give the galaxy his full attention.

Just then, the sound of a door opening echoed down the corridor his cell was in. Unhurried footsteps followed. The Master. Not bothering to give him any perceived respect, the Doctor stayed seated and didn’t look up when the assured steps halted in front of his cell. “I suppose you’ve managed to convince some others on the council that you’re not completely barmy,” he said when the footsteps halted in front of his cell. “How you managed that, I can’t imagine. They can’t have seen you in your full demented glory,” he added, shaking his head. “Shame, that. Still… I imagine it won’t be long before they realize they’ve a madman among them.”

“Oh, Doctor,” the Master’s cheery voice echoed in the corridor, “so bloody cocky. Even when you’re faced with lifetimes in prison. Well, I suppose you’ve got to try to save some dignity. After all, you’re about to face the new and improved penal system, and I doubt you’ll have much left after that,” he smirked. “I’ve implemented a new strategy for dealing with lawbreakers of your stature. Prison ships were luxury liners compared to what I have in store for you, Doctor,” he jeered.

The Doctor’s eyes to slid over to the Master. “Why did you kill him?” the Doctor asked lowly. “You could’ve successfully run for his position in a valid election. Instead you murdered him in cold blood,” the Doctor leveled.

The Master chuckled darkly. “That man was an embarrassment to his station and he needed to be gone in a permanent way. Too many people were swayed by his ridiculous sentiments,” he sneered. “And then you happened to drop by and… well, I’d be a fool not to use your otherwise annoying presence to my own ends,” the Master grinned.

The Doctor shook his head slowly, looking pityingly at the man leering down at him from outside the bars of his cell door. “This is so far below what I once thought you were. What you would become. At one time… I remember looking at you and being almost stunned by the possibilities for your future. You were… brilliant. Properly brilliant. Almost as clever as me. But now… something’s happened to you. The spark… the _life_ I once felt from you… it’s just… _gone_ ,” he said, looking reflective. “Sad, really,” he finished.

The Master’s countenance changed as the Doctor spoke and he now was practically vibrating with indignation. “How _dare_ you compare my vast intelligence to what your tiny mind can do. I have lost _nothing_ but my patience for fools over the years, Doctor. And I have systematically eliminated them. I’ve done away with all those idiots who have stood in my way in my quest to gain more. More information. More influence. More power. And now I’m poised to rule the _universe_ ,” he crowed.

“And you _really_ think the council will let you? You may have won some of them over with your lunacy, but I’m willing to bet most of them still have their wits about them. They’ll never let you get away with it,” he countered.

“HA!” the Master barked, beginning to pace before the cell. “You really _are_ a naive prat, aren’t you? That’s pretty much what Rose has been thinking about you… but I wasn’t so sure. _Now_ , though…” he trailed off, tsk-ing. “I really thought you had a bit more between your ears than mere meat.”

With the mention of Rose, the Doctor’s hearts picked up their pace. He, of course, had known that the Master had somehow been involved with Rose’s recent transformation, but this was proof. He had been in her head.

Working to keep his face as neutral as possible, he answered, “The council will see through your facade. It didn’t take me long, and they won’t be far behind,” he argued.

“Gods, Doctor,” the Master smiled, actually laughing now. “You really don’t see what’s happening here, do you? The council… the ones who were stupid enough to cross me… most of them are under my control now and it will only be a matter of time before the rest are as well. And really… I have you to thank for some of it, I suppose,” he added, crossing his arms, once again smirking.

“Oh?” the Doctor said lightly, even as a chill ran through him.

“Oh yes,” the Master confirmed. “If it wasn’t for your perverted interest in apes, I may never have had a chance to meet your little pet,” he smiled.

The Doctor’s blood suddenly ran cold and he could feel it drain from his face. Rose.

“Yes, Doctor. And thanks to your ‘bondmate’...” he sneered, “I managed to trial a new synthetic bond simulating agent without fear of getting caught. I’d planned to try it out on the next Time Lord charged of some misdemeanor or other, but there are those here who’ve been too closely looking into my business, so there was risk of discovery. But when you two just… handed yourselves over… and she was actually 100% Time Lord… who was I to resist? And imagine my surprise when I discovered she was already _bonded_!” he laughed. “I almost died of shock! I mean… she was practically an _ape_ when you met her, Doctor. Sure… she’s evolved now. And her mind… her _mind_ , Doctor,” he said, almost growling. “She’s a spirited one! She’s putting up quite a fight. More so than any other Time Lord I’ve given the drug to, actually. I can see why you were attracted,” he acquiesced. “But she’ll succumb. Just as all the others have done,” he said confidently. “I might as well tell you that when I’m done with you, I plan to take her. In the most… carnal of ways. I can do that now, you see,” he taunted.

In sharp contrast to the ice crystals that had clogged his arteries earlier, he could feel the heat of fury now rising within him.

The Master continued unabated. “The synthetic agent not only gives me control over conscious thought… it can allow me to complete a mating ritual without actually being bonded myself. _She_ , on the other hand, is already well on her way to being bonded to _me_. Bit of a one way trip, that,” he said, looking thoughtful. “Shame she was already bonded to someone else before me, though,” he said. “She won’t be able to survive a dual bonding. First she’ll go mad, you see,” he added, wistfully. “Actually, she’s already well on her way in that regard,” he began. “Then… well, then her mind will start creating those damn enzymes that heralded the end of many early Gallifreyan adulterers,” he mused. “Shame, that. I have to admit that I’m quite enjoying her, Doctor. She’s… feisty. And so _alive_. Quite unlike so many of the women on this planet,” he added, a glint of triumph in his eyes.

A filter of red clouded the Doctor’s vision as the megalomaniac continued his diatribe. “Oh well. We can’t win them all. It seems her light in this universe was meant to shine only very briefly. That is, unless… well… no. I suppose that’s a bit much to assume you’d put her life before yours,” he said, his eyes now boring into the Doctor’s.

Not wishing to play into the lunatic’s game, but still needing information, he said, “What? You’ve poisoned her! There’s nothing I can do about that now, is there?” he responded.

“Oh, but there _is_ , my dear Doctor,” he cooed. “You see… the bond you have with your precious flower will last only as long as you are _alive_ ,” he said pointedly. “And you see… I _will_ take her and complete the bond I’ve started forming with her already. So I’m afraid you only really have two futures to choose from for her. One in which she lives… albeit with someone who you’ve loathed for much of your life… or the other in which she dies. It’s really your choice,” he offered.

The Doctor made himself remain calm. Of course, he was right. If the Master defiled Rose, the synthetic bond he’d been cultivating would be completed and she would be technically bonded to both of them. It would kill her. But he knew that his death was exactly what the Master wanted. Without him in the way as a voice of opposition to the his lunacy there would be no one left to stop him. And as much as he would do anything to save Rose… and ending his own life was no exception… he couldn’t leave the universe in the hands of this madman.

 

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

Jack spent the rest of the day with Rose, wracking his brain to try to come up with a plan to help her. Despite his best intentions, though, he was still no closer to a solution and evening was already upon them. Rose had spent the daylight hours in bed, moving from lucid conversation to disjointed thoughts in the span of seconds all throughout the day. It was obviously an incredible effort for her to contain, or at least ‘dampen’ her connection with the Master. A few times she’d tried to explain what was happening to her, but the most he could gather was that the Master was somehow ‘talking’ to her in her mind through some sort of psychic connection. As far as he knew, such a strong connection wasn’t possible between Time Lords unless they were bonded, and even then, from what he gathered, actual ‘talking’ didn’t usually transpire unless the bonded pair were physically close and quite strong telepaths.

And while he was no closer to actually finding a real way to help Rose, he ashamedly couldn’t deny that this had been one of the most satisfying days he’d spent with anyone in a long while. He knew that very idea was horrid and ridiculous, but it didn’t stop him from thinking it. He’d spent an entire day with a very very attractive woman and it wasn’t about sex at all (though, in fairness, it really _couldn’t be_ ). That, in itself, was rather novel for him in the sense that he rarely spent this much time with a woman where his end goal wasn’t exactly that. This day, rather, had been focused on comfort and distraction, which he found to be a welcome change.

On top of that, he’d managed to learn a bit about this whole ‘alternative universe’ Rose apparently had lived in. He was reportedly quite a charmer there as well, he discovered, if not a bit of a do-gooder. Then again… he had to admit that even he had been finding himself thinking more and more along the lines of actively helping others. Maybe in those universes in which he had any sort of conscience he was meant to have Rose in his life. She seemed to have that effect on him.

He wondered vaguely if his other self found her as attractive as he did. Of course he would. He actually asked her at one point in the day if she and his other self had ever ‘explored’ that aspect of a relationship. She’d actually laughed at that and smacked him lightly on the arm, merely saying “Oh, Jack… you’re always you no matter which you you are.” He guessed that meant no. Couldn’t blame a guy for asking. And if nothing else, it made her smile, if only for a few minutes.

As the day came to a close, he came to the very real conclusion that he was going to have to find help. From whom, he wasn’t sure quite yet, but he knew it had to be someone with knowledge of Time Lord biology and preferably someone without a political agenda. Ha! He didn’t know a damn soul in Gallifrey who didn’t have a political agenda! Of course, his ‘associates’ on that particular planet weren’t generally the most scrupulous of folks, but he doubted the greater population had much less of a political bent.

No. What Rose needed was someone who could put her needs first and who could help her figure out how to break the bonds that tied her to the two crazy bastards who currently held her mind hostage.

But who? Who could be that for her? He wasn’t sure. But if they didn’t find someone soon, he was pretty sure her internal battle would be lost and she would surely not be the victor.  



	11. Chapter 11

Author's Notes:

Okay, so our poor Rose hasnt had it easy so far, and neither has the Doctor but things are about to um, things are going to weelllll

Alright, theres still more to happen before my muse lets up on our heroes. Still things are looking up a BIT with this chapter :)

Enjoy!  


****

### Identity Theft - Chapter 11: Onslaught

Rose looked down at the sleeping man beside her. Jack had been so gracious yesterday while she continued to fight her internal battle. He’d kept her hydrated and made her eat a couple of times in the many hours she’d been holed up in her room. She needed to keep her strength up, he said. The sweetest part was that he seemed to be quite insistent on assuring her that that the only reason she wasn’t being actively pursued by him was because of her ‘situation’, and that she shouldn’t worry that it was because he didn’t fancy her. She shook her head. At least some things never changed.

Sighing, she rubbed her temples. She was experiencing a tiny reprieve in what she was thinking now was going to be a neverending battle between her own identity and the Master’s and she knew she’d better enjoy it. It seemed he took small breaks in his mental insistence that she succumb to his will, and she was desperately thankful when those infrequent moments came.

She had been unable to sleep at all that night, which was no surprise. Her hold on her own free will was tenuous and dependent on her ability to stave off the full power of the Master’s influence. That didn’t mean she was free and clear of his distorted view of reality now, but at least with her attempt at a barrier in place she felt like she was mostly able to tell the difference between his thoughts and her own. One thing she couldn’t discern still, though, was how she really felt about the Doctor. She hated him one minute and the next she was trying to convince herself she needed to go to him. It was a like a constant war in her mind and it made her want to shut down altogether and just let the Master win. Let him take over. She was so tired. Soooo tired…

_No!_ Her own mind shouted at her. _He wants you to let him win. He’s trying to manipulate you to let him take over. He wants to CONTROL YOU!_ she reiterated for herself.

Climbing out of bed, she let out a frustrated grunt. It was so easy for him to ooze his way into her consciousness. She had to stay vigilant!

But she was SO exhausted. So very exhausted.

No! No nononono! Concentrating, she re-imagined a solid white wall climbing in front of the connection the Master had formed with her. This was the image she’d chosen to use to block him from the beginning. An impermeable seamless expanse of unending whiteness. It was the most fortified thing she could imagine. The wall. The one that had once separated her from ‘The’ Doctor. Her universe’s Doctor. That wall had seemed to her to be the most fortified impassible obstacle in the whole of reality. That’s why she chose it now.

Thoughts of that wall… the real one… floated through her mind. How she’d cried and railed against it that horrid day. Memories of the pain she’d felt with his loss echoed through her. She’d of course found him again, only to have him dump her on that blasted beach. _Just another wrong he did to you,_ a part of her mind insisted.

_NO!_ she thought to herself loudly. That wasn’t true. Not really. Of course at the time, she’d been so hurt and angry at Him for leaving her there with his meta-crisis that she’d found it almost impossible to even look at his double for the first few days. In her mind, she’d understood that the poor man who’d been left with her was just as much a victim of His cowardice as she was, but that didn’t matter. He had _His_ face, and she couldn’t bare to look at him and see His eyes staring back.

Tears sprang to her eyes even thinking it. Funny how now she would give anything to look into her husband’s eyes again.

And that’s when it hit her.

Her husband. Oh my God! Why hadn’t she thought of it before?! A thrill of hope flew through her, and with it the bond with this universe’s Doctor flared brightly for a moment. It lit her mind with warmth and for a moment she felt a bit disoriented. God, she missed him. A wave of need flowed through her with the thought and an empty ache filled her.

It was then that a flood of frustration overtook her. No. She didn’t miss him. She missed her _husband_. Her _real_ husband.

Quickly moving to sit beside Jack on the bed, she shook him gently. “Jack! Jack, wake up!” she said, urgency her voice.

Jack startled awake with her prodding and he bolted up to alertness. “What! What is it?!” he barked, clearly disoriented.

“Jack, shhh… it’s just me,” she assured him, allowing herself a small giggle at his expense. “Sorry I scared you… but… Jack, I’ve got a brilliant idea, and I need your help.”

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

The Doctor was leaning against the wall of his cell, pondering his next move when he was startled to full attention by a very unexpected flare of the bond. Rose! She needed him. He could feel it… it was immediate and full of insistence and he knew he had to go to her. Now.

Flying to his feet, he was about to call out for the guard when he heard a door open at the far end of the hall. Now prowling the length of the front barred wall of the cell, he waited impatiently for the Master to show his smug face. He didn’t have a plan yet to talk himself out of his confinement, but he’d improvise. He had to. Failure was not an option.

Finally, his visitor came into view, completely shocking him. “Romana?” he said, his jaw all but dropping in pleased surprise.

“Doctor,” she said soberly. “I see you’re finally where you should be,” she said evenly.

His hearts dropped. She was controlled. The Master was controlling her too. The little spark of hope he’d felt on seeing her faded quickly. “I am here, but this isn’t where I _should_ be,” he said carefully. “Why are you here? Is the Master sending his minions now to check on me? Not important enough for the big kahuna himself anymore?” he asked lightly.

“He thought it might be nice for you to get visitors. He thought I might be a good choice, given our friendship. I’m merely doing my duty,” she said, her face devoid of emotion.

So the Master had sent her to gloat over him. He was controlling one of his dearest friends and he knew what an impact it would have on him. And despite knowing that fact, it didn’t stop him from letting it get to him. Romana had given up so much for him in the past. She’d put herself on the line many times for him. For both him and Rose.

Romana wandered closer to the bars and gripped them. “It’s such a shame about your bondmate,” she said coldly. “Not even bonded a full month before she was called to something more important. Still, I suppose you at least had that time with her before...” she said, trailing off. “The Master wants the best for us, you know… for Gallifrey,” she suddenly said, as if trying to convince herself as much as him.

“What?” he said, confounded. What was she talking about?

“We’re a superior race, but we need guidance. _His_ guidance. He’s got a plan that will elevate us to a level we’ve never dreamed of,” she said, her eyes distant. “And for that, we need to control the once race who has consistently defied our rule,” she lectured.

The pulse of Doctor’s blood suddenly slowed to a crawl in his veins. The Daleks.

“He will lull them into false security with promises of joint rule, of course, and then when the situation is ripe…” she finished, her eyes haunted.

The full force of the situation hit him. The Daleks. They’d been the bane of the Time Lord’s existence for eons, but it had never escalated, mainly because they feared the Time Lords. They’d never gathered enough intelligence about their race to feel confident enough to defy them. But Rose had told him of the conflicts between the Daleks and the Time Lords in her universe and how it had escalated to a point beyond return. It had been called ‘The Time War’. His entire species had perished. All except for one living being.

“Romana…” he said, his voice hushed. “What is he going to do?” the Doctor said entreatingly, moving to the bars to stand directly before her. “Tell me. _Please_ ,” he said intensely through gritted teeth.

A look of significant confusion crossed Romana’s delicate features and for a moment her eyes flashed, revealing something closer to her soul. Quickly she reached into her pocket and slipped him a note, her hand shaking as she did so.

Looking down at the slip of paper he’d been handed, he opened it up. Written in Romana’s delicate hand were the Gallifreyan symbols conveying the chemical make-up of the synthetic bonding agent. His eyes widened. With this he could make a counteragent. His bond with Rose would be safe and she’d be free of the Master’s hold on her. His eyes jumped to lock with hers and he grabbed the bars, pulling himself closer to her. “Let me out, Romana. Please,” he said urgently.

For a moment the petite blonde stood before him unmoving, her eyes full of concentration. She was waging an internal battle and Gods only knew if she was winning. “Help me,” he pleaded. “I know you can do it, Romana.”

Her features looked a bit pained before she took a couple of steps back from him. A zing of anxiety shot through him as she backed away. Damn it! He had to get out of here! He was about to try his hand at pleading again when she gestured for him to stand back. Reaching into her robe she pulled out the sonic he’d once built for her and his worry instantly turned to relief. Aiming it shakily at the cell door, she activated it and a buzz filled the corridor briefly before the door swung open on it’s hinges.

For a moment he was sure he’d never seen anything so fantastic in his lives as that bloody door swinging open. Stepping out into the corridor he grabbed Romana’s face in his hands and planted a firm kiss on her forehead. “I owe you everything,” he said honestly, looking down at her with a giant grin.

A smile found her childlike features as she looked back up at him. This regeneration had her looking so very young, he sometimes forgot she was only a couple of decades younger than he was. “Of course you do,” she said with a bit of a cheeky grin, “but right now we’ve got to get you out of here.”

“Too right,” he agreed, grabbing up Romana’s hand and pulling her along behind him as he trotted toward the exit door. He hadn’t gotten far, though, when he realized she wasn’t coming along willingly. In fact, she’d come to a complete stop, making him do the same.

“No, Doctor… I can’t come with you. It’s too dangerous” she said seriously. Then, quite unexpectedly she said, “I need you to hit me. Knock me out. Quickly!” she commanded.

“Romana… I can’t! Just… come with me,” he said. “I can give you the antidote too,” he reasoned, trying to tug her along with him again.

Digging her heels in, she remained unmoved, whispering “No, Doctor. I’ve synthesized it here… I’m waiting until you’re free and then I’m going to make sure I take it and find a way to give it to the others on the council. I’ve been lucky enough to be able to conceal its existence from him until now by putting up a memory block when I feel myself losing control. The block is removed when I have control again. I’ll take the antidote next time I gain control again and you’re off the planet. But I can’t keep control for much longer right now. Rose needs you. I’ll be okay… he hasn’t noticed yet. He’s busy with others. Now hurry up... you need to hit me. Do it before he finds out, or you won’t make it. He’ll stop you. Or I will,” she warned, entreatingly.

Now it was the Doctor’s turn to look pained. How could he? She was risking her life for him! But of course that was _exactly why_ he had to do it. This way it would look like he’d overpowered her and she’d be safe until she could gain control of her mind again.

“I’m sorry, Romana,” he said, his face full of remorse. “I’m so sorry.” Romana closed her eyes and a look of concentration passed over her features. She was putting up the memory barriers. A moment later, a look of peace passed over her face. Then, pulling his fist back, he aimed a solid blow at her delicate jaw.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

A disorienting tug pulled and distorted the vibrant colours of the vortex as she travelled through it to land with a nauseating pull of air from her lungs. God, she hated travelling with this thing. She didn’t know how Jack managed it on a regular basis. It didn’t matter, though. She was just so thankful she’d had him there and that he’d been so ready to help her. Of course, he’d wanted to come with her, but she’d insisted that she had to do this alone and he begrudgingly accepted that, against his better judgement, he’d said.

Closing her eyes tightly, she willed herself to concentrate on what was most important at the moment. The wall in her mind. It was her attempt at a barricade to keep the Master at bay and the only thing keeping her free for the time being.

She could still feel the Master there… hovering… but the barrier she’d erected was still present and intact. Breathing a sigh of relief, she let herself open her eyes. Clutching her hand on her stomach as if that might somehow stop the continued sickening swooping feeling in her gut, she looked around.

London. She smiled. She’d done it.

Turning, in a slow circle, she quickly realized where she was and the reality of her situation hit her like a ton of bricks. Before her stood the building she’d once walked in and out of every day. Torchwood. It looked so imposing now, seeing it again after so long. The last time she’d set foot inside was when her Doctor passed away. After that she’d not been able to even drive by it, let alone enter it.

Now, here she was… her entire life had been changed irrevocably since then. Or… now. She sighed. Time travel was sometimes difficult even to think about. It made sense to her now why the Time Lords had come up with a language that had so many time tenses.

As she stood gazing up at the building, willing herself to gather the courage to enter, she felt a growing sense of unease. Something… she was feeling… she couldn’t put her finger on it, but she just felt uncomfortable. Something… timey, maybe?

A definite wave of dread filled her then. This… this was a bad idea. So much could go wrong. What if… what if she ran into herself? Memories of her leather clad Doctor and seeing herself as a baby flitted through her mind. She could mess up her entire time line! She could end _everything_! She should go back. She really shouldn’t be here. No possible good was going to come of this, she knew.

No… wait. _She_ didn’t know it. _HE_ was telling her that. The Master. He was bending his own thoughts in her head so they felt like her own! Well… FUCK OFF! she yelled in her mind, squeezing her eyes shut tightly. FUCK!!! OFF!!!

A pulse of anger flared behind the wall she’d erected before the Master’s gate into her mind and what followed took her by surprise. A mighty pressure exerted itself on the other side of her fragile barrier, making her perceived wall buckle under the onslaught. With it came a wave of force that stole her breath away. It threw a burst of pain through head so powerful that made her knees buckle and she felt herself slump to the ground.

Exerting as much force as she could against her side of the wall, she pushed back despite the pain, doing her best to fortify the structure as it bulged under the pressure. A growing feeling of satisfaction filled her mind as she did her best to hold her ground, but the satisfaction wasn’t coming from her. He was winning. And within moments she was going to lose herself again.

She had been so close. So close to getting help. Now, though…

“PUSH!” an insistent voice demanded.

The command seemed to come from everywhere in her mind and its presence shocked her. Everything in her wanted to stop what she was doing and look for the source of that voice, but right now she couldn’t devote either the time or the energy to find out who the hell was shouting at her. Instead, she reached deep into her very being and commanded all the energy she had to help her against the relentless onslaught. The Master was putting everything he had into this fight and she didn’t stand a chance. Not really. But she was determined not to go down without a fight.

“Do it, Rose! C’mon… PUSH!”

“I’M BLOODY PUSHING!” she shouted at the insistent voice. And she was. With everything she had.

It was then she felt the wall begin to shift slowly under her weight. A thrill of hope shot through her. God! Was she doing it?! She didn’t dare dwell on the perceived headway for long, however, as the Master was not relenting on the other side.

“That’s it, Rose! That’s IT!”

While the wall further strengthened with her continued effort, she could feel herself shaking under the strain and she could sense her body weakening. This mental war was taking its toll and she could only hope that her new ‘superior biology’ would hold out longer than her good ol’ human version would have. The good news was that she was beginning to feel the Master’s energy waning as well. It seemed this wasn’t easy for him either, which gave her hope.

Finally, after what felt like hours, she felt the wall fall fully back in place and she nearly sobbed with relief on realizing it had finally shifted back into its original shape and strength. She could still feel the Master on the other side, though, and rage rolled through their connection with the words that followed. _You have not won, dear girl,_ his voice promised her. _All you’ve done is postponed the inevitable._ With that, his presence retreated. For the time being.

His threat echoed ominously through her head as she slowly became aware of herself again in a physical way. And she quickly wished she hadn’t. On the positive side… if there was a positive side...it was that the state of her corporeal self completely distracted her from the weight of the Master’s words.

By far the most distracting and overwhelming sensation was that of her head feeling like it had been nearly ripped from her shoulders. A pounding ache pushed through her brain with impressive strength. She felt herself pull her hands to her head to try to stop her brains from pouring from her ears, but they were interrupted in their journey by a warm barrier.

Her eyes flew open to find the Doctor slowly pulling his hands from her temples. His warm brown eyes were looking at her frantically and his forehead was creased with worry. “Rose?”  



	12. Chapter 12

Author's Notes:

Oh my, but this chapter was a doozy. It really just kind of poured out of me, but I had tears in my eyes few times. Either it really is a bit of an emotional chapter, or Im dealing with unruly hormones. Ill go with whatever people decide. Anyway I dont want to give away too much before you even read the damn thing, so here you go!  


****

### Identity Theft - Chapter 12: Reunion

The trip back to his TARDIS had been a vigilant one, with the constant threat of discovery looming. Who was being controlled and who wasn’t was the question, and even those who weren’t might have been aware of his capture and arrest. Seeing him walking free would certainly raise eyebrows if not alarms.

It took far too long before he’d finally made it to his ship still parked in the landing bay. They’d not bothered to secure her, obviously thinking there was no chance the Doctor might escape, and for that he was incredibly thankful.

Boarding his ship he felt her relieved and welcoming hum and sent one back. She was as happy to see him as he was to see her it seemed.

Dashing to the console, he set a course for earth. The Master would know exactly where to look for him and there was little time before he’d send patrols for him. He had to make this fast.

Precious relative minutes ticked by before he landed with a thump in front of Rose’s front door in Broadchurch. He’d need to get in, take her… possibly against her will, he lamented… and get out.

The idea of having to forcibly remove her from her home made him feel sick, but he knew it was a distinct possibility. The Master was controlling her mind and it was doubtful she’d be able to fight him in any significant way given her recent ‘birth’ as a Time Lord. The Master had had centuries to hone his telepathic and empathic skills and her fledgling skills were surely no match for his abilities and his blasted drug no matter how brilliant she was.

That’s when he felt it. Through their bond he felt a bolt of fear and along with it came the distinct flavour of pain. She was being tormented by something and the pain she was feeling was immense.

Rassilon. The Master. He’d found out. He must’ve been alerted to his escape and he was making Rose pay.

Dashing to the doors, he threw them open and raced for Rose’s front door. Pushing the door open with such force it nearly put a crack in the wall behind it, he shouted “Rose!”

The sound of feet descending the stairs a sent a wave of relief through him so strong that he nearly sobbed. The person that appeared from the second story, however, was _definitely_ not the person he’d hoped to see.

“Jack?” he said, incredulously. The Time Agent was wrapped in one or Rose’s towels and had clearly just come from the shower. The Doctor felt a bolt of jealousy so strong he could barely contain himself. What had this bastard done to her? Then it occurred to him. The pain he’d felt from Rose through their bond. Was it… had Jack… she and Jack…

“Doctor,” the Time Agent replied solemnly.

“Where’s Rose?!” he demanded, now both angry and terrified.

“What makes you think you have the right to even _ask_ that?” the Doctor was amazed to hear him ask. What?!

“What right do _I_ have?! What the hell right do _you_ have to be anywhere near my bondmate?!” the Doctor said, astounded at the man’s nerve. “You didn’t get to defile her the first time you kidnapped her so you… you…” he gestured wildly to the man in front of him, aiming his gaze and his gesticulations directly at the towel covering the offending bits. “She’s _bonded_ to me, Jack! You could’ve killed her!”

Jack’s expression morphed into one of rage. “ _I_ could’ve killed her?! _ME?_ If it weren’t for YOU she wouldn’t even be _in_ this predicament right now!” he leveled angrily, glaring back at him. “But you HAD to do it, didn’t you, Doctor? You had to bond with her. Just being with her wasn’t enough… you had to _own_ her as well,” Jack accused. “And on top of that, you fuckin’ _drugged_ her to do it!” he shouted.

“What?!” the Doctor replied, gobsmacked. “No I didn’t! I asked her. Properly asked her. And she said yes, Jack. What do you take me for?!” he yelled back.

This news seemed to take Jack back a bit. “You asked her?” he said, his voice dropping a bit.

“Of _course_ I asked her! How could I… I could _never_...” he said, truly amazed that the thought had even occurred to Jack to accuse him of something so vile.

“But Rose said…” Jack said, his words trailing off.

“Rose isn’t herself right now, Jack. She’s been altered,” the Doctor said seriously.

Jack’s face dropped. “I know,” he said.

Angry heat pulsed through the Doctor with that comment. “You… you _knew_?! And you still took advantage of her?!” the Doctor accused, now furious. How _could_ he have? The Doctor knew Jack was a man of few scruples, but he didn’t think even _he_ would stoop this low.

“What?!” Jack barked back. “What do YOU take ME for?! I may be a lot of things, but I’m not a _rapist_ , Doc. Besides… after what you’d done to her… we couldn’t have even if she’d been in her right mind, now could we?” he glared.

The Doctor felt himself release some anxiety a bit with that comment. So he _hadn’t_ been with Rose then. But… if the pain hadn’t been because she and Jack…

“Besides,” Jack continued, his demeanor softening a bit, “she’s gone now. She told me about the Master… that he had somehow gotten into her mind. Between your bond and the Master’s control… she was really a mess. She had an idea… she left a while ago to get help,” he finished, gesturing to the wrist that normally sported his vortex manipulator.

“Help? What help?” the Doctor asked. Who could she go to? For one massively fearful moment, he pictured her trying to navigate her way to Gallifrey. Had she maybe thought Romana could help her?

Jack’s expression betrayed his worry and perhaps a bit of guilt. “I wanted to go with her, but she insisted that she had to go alone,” he explained, not answering his question.

“Jack… where is she?” the Doctor demanded ominously.

Sighing, Jack rubbed his temples. “She went to see her husband,” he answered.

The Doctor’s eyebrows shot clear into his hairline and hope must’ve shown on his features.

“No, not _you_ ,” Jack quickly huffed. “HIM. Her _other_ Doctor. The one she arrived in this universe with.”

Realization filled him. Of course. The Master had her convinced that he was the enemy so of course she’d never seek him out for help. And she’d been smart enough to realize she should keep clear of Gallifrey. Who _else_ would she go to but the man she’d once trusted with her life and her heart?

Unbidden, a sliver of jealousy once again found it’s way into his hearts, but he tried to ignore it. He’d known she loved the ‘other’ Doctor… the meta-crisis. Of course she had. It made sense she’d go to him. Really, he should sort of think of it as a compliment, he tried to convince himself. Even though she was being manipulated to think he was basically evil incarnate, she still sought him out in a way. Deep down she must still know she needs him… even if it was the ‘other’ him she went to.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

“Rose?” he repeated, his worried expression not abating.

“Doctor?” Rose asked through the haze of pain still throbbing in her head. In her mental confusion, she reached for him through their bond. She felt him there, but… he was so far away.

Then she realized who she was looking at. This wasn’t the Doctor. This was _her_ Doctor. Tears immediately sprung to her eyes and a sob escaped her. “Doctor!” she cried, rising so she could fully wrap her arms around him even as she sat on the cold cement.

“Rose,” he murmured, stroking her back and her hair as she clung to him.

“Oh, God. Doctor,” she sobbed into his jacket. “I’ve missed you. So much,” she said, her tears soaking through the fabric of his jacket.

Pulling back, he studied her. He looked… tired. Worn. Then it occurred to her. He looked sick. And he was. Looking down at the manipulator, she glanced at the date. He was already so very sick.

Fresh tears spilled down her cheeks as she looked back up at him. He only had a few months left.

Smoothing her hair back off her forehead, he said gently, “You’re… you’re not human.” It wasn’t a question. He’d been in her head.

“Yeah,” she smiled, still trying to memorize every small line and crease on his face. It struck her that her memory of him… exactly how he looked... had become fuzzy over the last year and a half and the thought made her sad.

“But… when?” he asked, probably knowing she wouldn’t be able to tell him, but unable to not ask.

“A long time from now,” she said, hoping her vague answer would be enough. The Doctor merely nodded.

“Shall I call 999, young man?” an older woman asked from somewhere just out of her sight. The Doctor looked up as did she, suddenly aware they’d drawn a crowd.

“Uh...No… no thank-you. I’m a doctor. She… she just had a small seizure. She’s fine now,” he said, nodding his thanks to the woman.

Helping Rose to her feet, he said, “I think we should take this conversation somewhere more comfortable, don’t you?” he said, a soft smile finding his lips.

A lorry sized lump formed in her throat. She was really here. Talking to him and looking at him. This very moment had been a dream… a prayer… for a full year. She’d spent hours and hours on end, desperately wishing she could just lay eyes on him one more time. Tell him again how much she loved him. How she needed him to know what he’d meant to her. That he’d been her _everything_ and that she was nothing without him.

Realizing he was waiting for a response, she tried to find her voice, but couldn’t. Instead, she nodded gratefully and let him lead her away from the small group of people who’d now begun to disperse.

Finding a park bench, he led her to it and then sat on it with her, turning to face her. Draping his arm over the back of the bench , his hand brushed her hair from her shoulder. The familiar gesture made her ache. It was something he’d taken to doing as her hair had gotten longer and she’d always loved it… that intimate non-verbal confirmation of his affection for her.

“I have so many questions,” the Doctor said honestly, “But first thing’s first… who _is_ that in your mind, Rose? What’s happened to you?” he asked, worry once again marring his handsome features.

She was about to try to answer him when she felt the Master’s return in her mind. And he was angry. “Doctor… I… I don’t have much time,” she shared, sensing the truth of that statement even as she said it. “I need your help,” she said.

Nodding, he said, “Anything, Rose. You know that.”

She _did_ know that. That’s why she was here. “I have to tell you something… and I… I know I shouldn’t, but… I didn’t know who else to turn to,” she admitted, realizing suddenly how very very selfish she was being, even asking him. The man before her was bloody _dying_ for God’s sake… and here she was complaining about something so seemingly minor in comparison.

The Doctor merely looked at her with concern, waiting for her to continue. When she didn’t after a few more moments he said, “It’s okay, Rose. I… I know I’m gone. When you’re from. You can tell me… I won’t say anything to you. Er… younger you,” he promised.

His blatant discussion of his impending death nearly stole her breath. It hurt to hear him refer to his passing so nonchalantly. Shaking her head, she said, “How can you say that so… calmly? You’re… you’re _dying_ ,” she entreated. “You’re dying and there was bloody _nothing_ I could do about it. I had to watch you…” she said, her voice catching before new tears trailed down her cheeks.

“Hey,” he said, his own features scrunching a bit with emotion as he pulled her close to wrap his arms around her again. “Everyone dies, Rose. I’d hoped… weeellll… I’d hoped I’d get a bit more time with you. That I’d get to see you grow old…” he said, then pulling back with a little smile, “Though it seems that wasn’t meant to be either,” he said, his eyes actually alight with happiness. How could he be _happy_ right now? Now when her younger self was living on egg shells waiting for the other shoe to drop. For him to collapse in pain in front of her. Before she could say as much, he continued, “I can’t tell you how… how very relieved I am, seeing you here like this,” he said, his own eyes brimming.

Reaching out, she smoothed her hand down the side of his handsome face. The liquid brimming in his eyes pearled and fell as his lids slipped closed under her touch. “Knowing you’ll go on… you’ll have lifetimes ahead of you to find happiness again… I can go in peace with the comfort of that, Rose,” he shared.

Rose’s hand withdrew hastily with the last comment. She wasn’t going to have that, though, was she? _Not now. Now that this universe’s substandard version of his has ruined your future._

Rose closed her eyes, once again unsure who was thinking her thoughts. Were they really hers?

“What is it, Rose?”

“It’s… it’s the Master,” she breathed, concentrating… once again checking that her mental blockade was intact.

“The Master?” the Doctor’s voice breathed, unbelieving. “He’s here? In this universe?”

Deciding the wall was as strong as she was going be able to keep it, she opened her eyes. “Yeah, he’s here. And he’s in my head, Doctor, and I don’t know how to get him out. And… and that’s not the worst of it,” she admitted, looking down at her hands. How could she tell him this? She’d betrayed his memory and she was about to admit it to his face while he was still _alive_ for pity’s sake.

“It’s alright, Rose. Tell me,” he said calmly.

Sighing, she decided she had to tell him if she wanted his help. “I… I met… the Doctor here. The Doctor from this universe,” she said, her eyes slipping up guiltily to meet his.

His brow furrowed a bit with her admission and he looked… pensive. “You… you’re with him now,” he said. Once again...not a question.

Unable to maintain eye contact, she looked down at her hands again and nodded. God. What must he think of her? “I met him when he wasn’t him. I mean… he was human when I met him. And he wasn’t the Doctor. He was a bloke called ‘Alec Hardy’,” she said, trying to explain. God. “He had had to become human to hide from these… corporeal beings, but he got stuck living as a human long after the aliens had died. That’s when I met him. He didn’t even know he was the Doctor,” she said, hoping he’d understand.

“The Family of Blood,” the Doctor said softly. “He’d used the arch.”

Rose nodded. “Yeah. But then, Alec was so sick… he was dying. I… I’d found a fob watch… it changed him. I thought…” she trailed off.

“What?” he asked gently.

“I thought he was… _Him_. That he’d somehow managed to cross the void,” she admitted. “But he wasn’t. He was someone different. I thought… I trusted him…” she said, her voice dropping.

The Doctor’s countenance became dark and protective then. “Did he hurt you, Rose,” he asked, obviously working to keep his voice level.

YES! He did hurt you. He took your hearts and tore them from your chest by betraying you. Betraying your trust. He is a blight in the otherwise pristine fabric of this universe. You know it’s true.

Rose pulled her hands up to rub her temples. “I… I don’t know…” she said, scrunching her eyes shut. “I… think he did, but… I... God, Doctor… I’m so confused,” she said, honestly.

Pain seemed to play across the Doctor’s features as he listened to her. “Rose… can I… I know I didn’t ask before, but you were… I could tell you were in trouble, and I just went in without your permission…” he stammered, clearly uncomfortable asking.

By way of an answer, Rose took one of his hands in hers and brought it to her lips. Kissing his fingertips softly then before placing them on her temple, she whispered, “I trust you. Only you.” She knew she was putting all her faith in this man, but in truth, right now he really was the only one in the whole universe she felt would never betray her.

He smiled softly then, clearly touched by her complete and utter faith in him. God, she loved him. She loved him with all her heart back then and now she did so with both of them. Deep down she knew that would never change. She’d love him for all eternity. Her Doctor.

Raising his other hand to mimic his first, he sat for a moment with both hands to her temples. “Just tell me if you want me to stop, Rose. I will,” he promised.

She nodded and gave him a weak smile. Watching as he closed his eyes, she felt a very gentle nudge push against her awareness. He was being so careful. So gentle. It nearly stole her breath away.

In moments, he was moving through her mind and the feeling was… glorious. Closing her own eyes, she allowed herself to soak up his essence as he carefully explored the corridors in her mind. She’d had the Doctor… this universe’s Doctor… in her mind before, of course, and that had been breathtaking, but this… this was _her_ Doctor in her mind now. He felt different than her bondmate. He wasn’t as strong in his empathic abilities, which made sense. He was only part Time Lord. It didn’t matter, though. She was sharing something now between them they’d never been able to share when she was human. The significance of what was happening wasn’t lost on him either. She could feel it from him as he oh so gently played through her thoughts. As if working of their own accord, her own hands trailed up to find his temples too, and on contact her awareness of him suddenly and brilliantly increased and his single heartbeat sped up as if in response. She could almost feel his mind melt in hers as they sat together, their minds joined. Pure joy emanated from him as she wound her way through his mind as well, and within moments, she found her lips pressed hard against his, her one hand pulling him tightly against her and the other raking through his hair. The Doctor responded in kind, clutching her even more tightly to him while running his hands along her back and through her long blonde strands.

A massive jolt of pain shot through Rose’s skull then, making her pull away from him with a startled yelp. An extended groan of pain poured from her as she clutched her head tightly in her hands, praying for the pain to recede.

In the background she could hear him calling her, repeating her name with frantic urgency, but she couldn’t yet bring herself to open her eyes. It wasn’t for another full minute before the agony that had pulsed through her finally abated and she was able to crack open an eye.

The Doctor swam into view, his face filled with horror. “Gods, Rose! You’re… you’re _bonded_! But… the Master… that didn’t feel like a complete bond, Rose,” he said, obviously confused. “It shouldn’t have had that effect on you,” he said, matter of factly. Both anger and worry seemed to emanate from him as he waited for her to say something.

Rose shook her head. How could she tell him? After all he’d given her… after all he’d suffered… she’d just gone ahead and blithely bonded herself to someone else. She’d betrayed his memory.

Sighing, the Doctor brought his fingers up to rubs his forehead. “It was him, wasn’t it? The… this universe’s Doctor. You’re fully bonded with him aren’t you?” he asked, his voice devoid of emotion.

She nodded. Hot tears stung her eyes. He hated her. Of course he did. How could he not? For a moment, the Doctor sat beside her, his eyes cast downward. This was it. He was going to tell her to leave. That he was sorry he’d ever laid eyes on her in the first place. And she’d deserve it.

“That bastard!” the Doctor suddenly shouted, making her jump. “That bloody, sodding _bastard_!” he reiterated.

Rose was a bit surprised he’d chosen to be angry with the Doctor rather than at her primarily, but she couldn’t argue with his assessment. The Doctor was a fucking bastard who deserved every bad thought anyone chose to think about him. _No! That’s not true!_ one of the voices in her head whispered.

“Don’t you see, Rose,” he said, turning to her, taking both her hands in his. “The Master _knew_ you were bonded. That bastard is using it against the Doctor. He’s making you hate him… hate your…” he swallowed, “...bondmate. He’s doing this to hurt him. Maybe even to convince him to kill himself to save you. I don’t know how the Master got in your head, Rose, but I know you and I doubt very much you willingly let him. I’m guessing that arse somehow forced himself on you and now here you are. Oh, Gods, Rose! Your mind… you’re barely hanging on in there, aren’t you?” he said, sounding astounded and horrified at the same time.

For a moment Rose was speechless. Everything the Doctor was saying made sense. It all added up. _She_ didn’t hate the Doctor. _The Master_ hated the Doctor. Those were _his_ thoughts manipulating her feelings for him, making her think he’d betrayed her. Making her think he’d used her.

“Oh, God, Doctor… what have I done?” she whispered, staring fearfully into her husband’s eyes. “What have I done?”

“It’s not you, Rose. It’s HIM. It’s the Master. This is HIS fault, not yours. Somehow… do whatever you need to do to keep this in your mind, Rose. This is his doing. You’ve done nothing wrong,” he emphasized, his eyes locking onto hers.

“Not my fault,” she repeated, unsure of that fact, but trying to believe him. Wanting to believe him.

“That’s right,” he agreed, pulling her into a tight embrace. After a moment, he pulled back and looked at her seriously again. “Now I need you do this, Rose. You need to go to him. Go to the Doctor and tell him you need his help. Do you understand?” he asked, entreatingly.

Rose’s brows furrowed. “But…”

“Rose, I know you’re confused. Gods know _I’m_ confused right now. Look at me! I’m telling my wife to go find her new husband to get help,” he smiled sadly. “But I know I’m right about this. And you trust me, yeah?”

Without a doubt she did. There was no confusion about what the answer was to that question. She trusted him with everything. “Yeah,” she agreed, her eyes shining.

“Then go to him. If he needs you half as much as I do, then he’s going mad with worry right now for you,” he said earnestly.

A burst of fury jerked her straight from the brink of agreement to send her headlong into a confusing cacophony of fear and rage mingled heavily with distaste.

Aware enough to quickly jump to defend the barricade in her mind, she found it buckling dangerously inward. The Master had been lying in wait to take her off guard and he had. Hastily working to fortify the barrier, she felt it give… a large crack snaking across it, spreading at a furious pace. With incredible effort, she managed to press herself up against the wall enough to halt the progress of the invading mind, but her hold was tenuous at best.

She suddenly felt her Doctor slide into her mind as well. No! She felt herself panic with the presence of yet another consciousness in hers all of a sudden. No matter how well intentioned, she couldn’t handle it and she desperately pushed back. With a jolt she felt him jump out of her mind as if he’d been stung.

The realization that she’d just hurt him… the one person in the universe who was actually helping her… sent her into a whirl of messy, confused and panicked thoughts. She had to stop this. She had to somehow get everyone out of her head. The Master, the Doctor… everyone. She needed peace! She needed to make sure none of this would ever happen.

That’s when an idea came to her and she glommed onto it with all her strength. Opening her eyes, she quickly stood up. Staggering back a few steps from the Doctor and the bench, she quickly started typing coordinates into the manipulator on her wrist.

“Rose?” he said, his voice filled with concern.

Halting her work for a moment, she looked up. “I’m sorry, Doctor,” she said, meaning it more than she could ever say. “I’m so sorry. I… I just have to make sure… I have to stop this! I wasn’t supposed to do this to you. We were married… I loved you more than life. And then… I betrayed you. I met him and betrayed you. But I won’t do it,” she assured him. “I’ll make sure of it. I promise I’ll be faithful to you, Doctor. You have my word,” she said.

“What?” she heard him say as she looked down to keep programming the manipulator. “You were never unfaithful, Rose,” he said, now standing as well.

“Not while you were alive…” she entreated. Then she froze. Hearing the words escape her lips made it all real. He was here now. Talking to her. But he wasn’t really. He was dead. And now she’d sullied even her memory of him by telling him she hadn’t even honoured him in death. The truth of it sent her further into despair, making her break into full blown sobs.

“Rose, please… listen to me,” he pleaded, approaching her, his hands reaching. Then it hit her. He thought she was mad!

“No, Doctor! Stay back!” she commanded. Then her voice softened. “I have to do this, don’t you see? Then we can be together forever. I’ll come back for you when this is over and I’ll save you, yeah? Then you’ll never have to leave me,” she heard herself say. Somewhere deep inside her she knew how ridiculous she sounded, but on another level it made sense. So much sense.

“Good-bye, Doctor,” she said, smiling softly at him. Then she activated the device on her wrist. She had figured out a way to save her mind and her husband and nothing was going to stop her.  



	13. Chapter 13

Author's Notes:

I've had a couple days at home to write, so I'm posting again right away. What the heck - you only live once.

Ive LOVED writing the meta-crisis Doctor and this chapter was no exception. My heart has always gone out to that version of Ten, and writing him again has made my heart happy, even if the subject matter wasnt.

Thanks, as always, for all of you who continue to read, fave and comment. It really really does mean the world to me!

****

### Identity Theft - Chapter 13: Smoke and Mirrors

Rose disappeared before him with a crack and a flash of light and the Doctor was left standing in the street in front of Torchwood feeling nothing but desperate worry. She was hanging onto to sanity by a thread and by the looks of it, the Master was gaining ground. Part of him was desperate to follow her, but he had no means at the moment. He supposed he could dig around Torchwood and see if there was anything he could pull together in terms of technology to at least track her. Vortex manipulators were a crude form of time travel and they left rather obvious traces in the vortex. It was possible he could cobble together something that might at least tell him where and when she went.

Yeah… but then what? It wasn’t like he had a TARDIS to chase her with. He was stuck. Not to mention the very real fact that it had taken all his energy to even get out of the flat to get down to Torchwood today. They’d had a small scare involving a lesser known species of lupiform celestial entities and they hated to be a bother… but could he maybe pop in and help them out? Of course he’d been unable to say no. He may be dying, but he wasn’t dead yet. Naturally Rose had objected, saying he’d already done enough for the universes and that he should take care of himself for once. He’d argued, telling her that while he still had something useful to contribute, he would, and with that, he’d left in a bit of a huff.

Now, thinking about how he’d left the flat, he was ashamed. Who was he to be frustrated that she loved him _too much_? That she just wanted to see him take care of himself. What she didn’t understand, though, was that if he just… waited to die… he would already be dead where is really mattered. In his head. No. While he was alive, he intended to _live_. But now… seeing this Rose hurting… needing him… he knew he needed to go home to her younger self and explain it better. He had so little time left and whatever he did, he wanted her to know he appreciated her. He wanted her to know he knew she cared. And he _needed_ her to know he wanted her to move on after he passed. That she deserved happiness.

What he desperately wished, though, was that he could tell her about today. But he couldn’t. Telling her would have long reaching and possibly catastrophic consequences and he knew he would be risking too much if he did.

He _had_ to help her, though. But how? What could he do? He had nothing at his disposal that might be of use and the crushing helplessness almost made him sick. His wife needed him. She’d come to _him_... years after he’d passed, he assumed… for help. He couldn’t let her down.

He was about to head back into Torchwood to see if the storage warehouse in the bowels of the building held anything that might inspire him when a desperately familiar sound filled his ears.

Before him, the TARDIS materialized, it’s brilliant blue shell crystallizing before him in the sunlight. His throat clogged with emotion on seeing her and in the back of his mind, a familiar hum greeted him, making him almost gasp with the welcome mental touch. Unable to do anything but gape at her as she stood majestically before him, he waited. This would be the Doctor from this universe. He knew it without even meeting the man. The TARDIS basically felt the same in his mind, but the hum was just ever so slightly different, making him aware once again that the void had forever shut him and Rose from their home and his ship.

Despite basically knowing who was going to step out of those wooden doors, he found himself oddly surprised to see the Doctor emerge. It was always surreal… basically meeting yourself. This, though… this wasn’t the original him. Not strictly. Weeeelll… it might as well have been, really… biologically, anyway, he figured. Experientially though… a different man was standing before him. Possibly not completely different, he reasoned. It was likely he’d gone through similar experiences as his… this _was_ a parallel universe, after all. He’d clearly been pursued by the Family of Blood, just as he had back in their home universe, so he knew at least that much was the same. The rest of this man’s life, though, might have been substantially different.

“Er… Hello,” the ‘resident’ Doctor ventured. “I, uh… have you seen Rose by any chance? You know… a Rose that’s, um… not strictly from around this particular time?” he tried.

Nodding mutely, the Doctor merely continued staring. So _this_ was the other ‘him’. The one Rose had bonded with. He looked for all the world just like him, except his hair had a bit more of a reddish tinge. Figured.

“Riiiiight. Well… if you don’t mind, I’m sort of in a bit of a rush. Any idea where she went?” the resident Doctor asked.

Coming to himself, he said, “She, uh… I don’t know, exactly. She used the vortex manipulator and vanished. Said she had a plan… she didn’t say more than that,” he shared. “But listen… she wasn’t herself. I don’t know how much you know, but she’s halfway through a second bonding with the Master,” he warned. Second bonding. He was very aware that with that statement he’d just more or less verbally acknowledged the fact that his wife was also this other man’s wife as well. The idea made him feel more sad than jealous. Seeing this man standing before him asking after his wife was visual, undeniable proof that in a month or two he would cease to be. Worse, though, was that if something didn’t stop the Master soon, his Rose would join him much sooner than he ever would have wanted her to. “She won’t survive being bonded twice,” he said significantly, locking eyes with the other Doctor.

The other Doctor’s expression darkened. “I’m aware,” he said, obviously as concerned about it as he was.

“Then you know what sort of state she’s in? Her mind… she’s barely hanging on. She wasn’t in her right mind when she left here, You should know that. She was insistent that she’d…” he swallowed, continuing in an even tone, “... that she’d been unfaithful. To me. That being with you… she’d betrayed me. I tried to assure her that she hadn’t. She hadn’t betrayed me. But she was insistent. She said she was going to make sure that would never happen,” he warned him.

The Doctor nodded, obviously aware how significant that admission was for him. “Thank-you,” the resident Doctor said solemnly before turning back to step through the TARDIS doors.

Before he closed them, though, the Doctor said, “You need to know… I want her to be happy,” he said seriously. “If that means she should be with you, then that’s what needs to happen. But if you so much as harm one hair on her head, I swear I will haunt you for the remainder of your lives,” he warned.

The resident Doctor studied him for a moment before nodding his understanding. The message had been received.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

The uncomfortable sucking tug pulled Rose back into reality again, but she was no longer standing in front of the man she’d loved and grieved over. She now stood on a street in front of an official looking little building. She was in Sandbrook, if she’d programmed the manipulator correctly… and she dearly hoped she had. This was where it all started. Swiping at the tears that still clung to her cheeks, she checked out the building from where she stood. It was a plain one story affair of maybe 4000 square feet… a typical small town police station.

Scooting behind a bush where she could keep an eye on the building, she settled in, trying to somehow unclutter her confused thoughts and feelings. It seemed that somehow every idea she’d ever had was crowding for her attention along with every feeling she’d ever had about any of them. Her nerves felt raw and her energy was being robbed by the strain of keeping the wall strong enough to hold the Master at bay.

Looking down at the screen of the contraption that had gotten her here, she took in the date and time. It was the right day, but the wrong time. Today was the day Alec’s wife had the locket stolen from her vehicle... that’s the day she’d been aiming for. But she’d wanted to be here early in the morning so she could give herself enough time to sort a way to make sure his wife never lost possession of it, therefore ensuring Alec wouldn’t have to leave Glasgow.

Now, as she crouched here behind a bush in front of the police station a mere few hours before it actually happened, the best idea she could come up with was to find a way to warn Alec’s wife. To somehow caution her against cheating on him… at least for that night. That way, she’d never leave the evidence… the locket… in her vehicle outside the hotel, and it would never get stolen. Alec’s case against the murderer of the two little girls wouldn’t be compromised and he’d never be compelled to move. She’d never meet him. She’d never be bonded with him. She’d never meet the Master either. It solved every problem she had.

Granted, it wasn’t the most slick plan ever, but at least that way she wouldn’t have to come face to face with Alec… something she was sure was a very bad idea. Even from the moment the idea popped into her head, she’d somehow known it wasn’t an option. She couldn’t put the reason _why_ it was a bad idea into words… it was a just visceral gut feeling and she felt compelled to trust it. Must be some… timey wimey thing she’d yet to learn about her new biology. Whatever the reason… she was sure confronting him directly to try to sway his time line would be a very bad thing and she wasn’t willing to cross that particular boundary.

Anyhow… now she had to somehow meet and talk with Alec’s wife Beverly… alone. Maybe she should just… go in and ask to speak with her. But what was she going to say, exactly? Tell her… she knew the guy she was going to meet with was… oh, bollocks… that he had gonorrhea or something. Or better yet... tell her that she’d heard about a plan to steal the locket… that the murderer had connections who were planning to get it back so the case would have to be dropped. Yeah. That might work.

She was about to get up and walk into the station when a few people streamed from the building. Among them was the Doctor… Alec… followed closely by an attractive raven haired woman. Ducking back quickly behind the book she watched them leave the building.

_Doctor!_ a tiny voice shouted from somewhere buried in her mind. A small spark ignited their bond with the deep, frantic cry of his name and Rose gasped. The pulse of life coming from the dampened connection warmed her and made her ache at the same time. _Stop this! He needs you! Please! Look at him!_ her own tiny voice pleaded. She did. He looked anxious, as did the woman, who she assumed was ‘Beverly’, and they were clearly on a mission to get somewhere fast. _If you do this… he’ll die as Alec. The man you love, will never exist again,_ the voice warned. The thought brought her back momentarily to what her Doctor had said. ‘Go to him.’

With the memory, it seemed hundreds of others suddenly popped into her consciousness demanding to be acknowledged… some for and some against the idea, and many just… yelling unrelated nonsense into her crowded mind. Her consciousness seemed to become doused in a fog of smoke, making it difficult for her to decide who was saying what and what each memory was trying to tell her. Above the smoke and noise, though, a thoroughly furious entity boomed over all else.

_DAMN IT, WOMAN!_ the Master’s furious voice reverberated through her skull, _What fool thing are you doing?! Come to me this instant. You WILL follow my will! I am your Master and I COMMAND it!_ Along with the demand came a searing pain that issued from the place where the Master lived in her mind making her squeeze her eyes shut and grasp the sides of her head. _You are NOTHING without me! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!_

“Yes!” she shouted, dropping to her knees while still clutching her head. The pain seared her mind once again before it faded and it’s retreat nearly made her sob.

“Miss?”

Oh, God. The warm touch of a man’s hand found her shoulder. Daring to open her eyes, she looked at the man crouched beside her looking concerned. The Doctor. No… Alec.

“Are you okay?” he asked, his alert brown eyes boring into hers.

The sight of him staring into her soul made her dizzy. Alec. The man who she’d given her heart to long before she even knew he was really the Doctor. The sad tug of grief pulled at her from somewhere deep down inside. Another man she’d loved and lost. Another man with _his_ face. Guilt floated through her as she looked up into his eyes. When she did this… when she changed the future… he’d die in hospital without her. Alone. Pain pierced her with the thought. She was going to literally be the death of him. Surely he could see… he could sense her purpose… even as Alec.

“I’m fine,” she heard her voice say in response. “I… I get migraines, and… this one just caught me off guard is all,” her mouth said of it’s own accord even as her hearts broke.

“Oh… well, do you want me to call for an ambulance?” he offered, clearly unsure what the proper response for a migraine should be.

“No… I’m fine, really. Sorry to have alarmed you,” she apologized, allowing him to help her to her feet.

“It’s no bother,” he assured her, his Scottish accent pulling intimate memories of him to the forefront of her mind. Looking around, he called one of the uniformed police officers over. “Constable, can you get this young lady a glass of water and somewhere to sit for a few minutes?” he directed more than asked.

“Aye, sir,” the officer replied, taking the Detective’s place by Rose’s side. “Come on, Miss,” he said kindly.

“Thanks,” she replied absently, watching as Alec retreated toward the waiting group in the parking lot. Splitting into pairs, she watched the lot of them jump into vehicles parked outside the station.

Suddenly fear bolted through her. She wasn’t supposed to meet him, she remembered. Looking around fearfully, she watched the skies. Surely Reapers were coming now… though as far as she could tell, the world seemed the same as ever. Maybe… maybe he wasn’t going to remember meeting her. Even in this timeline.

Watching the cars pull off with sirens blaring she cursed. Obviously the police had just found the locket and had notified Alec. They were off to collect it and evaluate the scene. Brilliant. Just fucking brilliant! Frustration played through her, making it almost difficult to see straight. Now what?

As the constable led her to a waiting chair in the lobby and popped off to get her the water as directed, she considered her next move as best she could. Thoughts of Alec looking down at her with his concerned brown eyes filled her mind for a moment. She had loved this man and now she was condemning him to death. But… if she didn’t, he’d become _him_ and she’d lose her life to madness again. She’d become a slave to the Master like she soon would be if she didn’t do something to change the past. Resolve once again melted her doubts. There was no other way. As heartbreaking as it was, there was no other way she could be free.

But how was she going to actually do it now? Maybe she could just pop back further into the past… like… to yesterday or something. The nagging gut feeling of unease reared its head then. Shit. That bloody… timey feeling again. She was part of established events now with regard to this event which meant she couldn’t simply go to an earlier time and alter it from there. Damn it. That meant she’d have to continue to try to change things from here.

Then an idea came to her. It was risky, there was no doubt. It definitely wouldn’t have been her first choice of ways to change the future, but at least when it was done, there would be no question and no more worries. Alec wouldn’t move to Broadchurch, the Master wouldn’t care that she existed, and her future would carry the freedom to be with the man she needed. Her husband.  



	14. Chapter 14

Author's Notes:

  
**Please note:** This chapter is definitely not for the faint of heart or for those uncomfortable with non-con. There are curse words as well. Basically, most warnings apply.

This chapter was incredibly difficult to write, mostly because it was quite a task trying to keep the plot moving ahead while writing from Roses non-sane perspective. Hopefully it comes across clearly or unclearly from Roses perspective!

Thanks to all my fantastical readers whove been so supportive! Usually as I get closer to the end of a fic I post more often, so theres a possibility of that from now on. Still I promise nothing, because thats the kind of EVIL writer I am!  
  


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### Identity Theft - Chapter 14: Toppled

Sitting outside in the early evening air, Rose waited uneasily across the street from the hotel, trying to stay focused and alert, but having a very hard time doing so. She was having an increasingly difficult time keeping her thoughts together. Her mind was shattered into too many pieces and each had it’s own distinct feelings and ideas, each one demanding attention and insisting it was right. She wondered if this was how the Doctor felt sometimes, with his thoughts and ideas flying through his head as if he had too many to keep track of. Maybe that’s why he talked so fast, she smiled. Warm affection for the Time Lord spread through her veins and lit up the bond they shared. A white hot longing emanated from it, making her gasp and she instantly felt herself call to him through their bond. _Doctor! Help me! Please!_ the voice pleaded pathetically.

A snarl rose from her own throat with the realization of what she was doing. She needed everyone OUT of her head, for God’s sake! Shouting at them from her mind was only inviting them in! With indignation, another part of her own mind hastened to send another message to him. _No. On second thought… don’t. I don’t need you! I don’t need the ANYONE in my head!_ She knew she wasn’t capable of sending words to him, certainly not without touching him or at least being in closer proximity if she was feeling intense enough, but he would at least get the feeling behind the message. Stay. Away.

Stay. Away. Maybe _you_ should be doing just that right now too. Staying away. From this situation. From trying to change the past. _It’s wrong! You can feel it!_

No. It wasn’t wrong. It was the only option. The only thing right. And she needed to be rid of the voices shouting in her mind and the only way to do that was to shut the connections that were driving her mad. If she could lance them like a boil, she would, but sadly this was all that was going to work. This was the only way. The only way.

It shouldn’t be too long now before Beverly Hardy showed up for her clandestine affair. She’d soon have it done and over and the festering open wounds in her mind would finally be closed forever.

_And your future will be lost as well._

“Shut up,” she said aloud, addressing that fucking relentless nagging voice. As she waited, she did her best to press down the weighty feeling of dread filling her belly. She knew this was the only course of action left to her, but every instinct she had told her not to do it. It didn’t feel like her own stupid subconscious this time, though. It was… deeper than that. It was primal.

She couldn’t consider that right now, though. She had no choice in this. She was sure of it. This was going to be the only chance she’d have at freedom from the Doctor and the Master. It had to be done.

A chill spread through her as she waited, and a shadow passed over her from above. Clouds were forming in the sky and a wind was picking up as she stood alongside the corner of the building, peering out from her vantage point at the hotel across the street. It all felt distinctly ominous.

Just then, a blue sedan pulled up and parked in poorly lit, isolated spot a little ways down from the front of the nondescript looking hotel. The tall thin brunette Alec had married climbed out of the driver’s side, glancing around as she did. She was still dressed in her work attire… a pair of tight black trousers and a fitted light blue blouse. She’d obviously come straight here after probably kissing Alec good-bye.

A completely irrational surge of jealousy zapped through her with the thought. _How fucking_ dare _she!_ the brash voice shouted in her mind. Part her wanted to jump up and pummel the woman from behind. She’d never see what hit her.

_What?! What the hell are you thinking?!_ some other part of her mind admonished. _For fuck’s sake! Concentrate, or you’ll never be free of all these crazy voices!_ another voice chastised. Yes. Concentrate.

Watching the DS enter the building, Rose surveyed the property. No surprise the Detective had chosen this as the location for her rendez-vous. It was a nothing little seedy place. She recalled being disgusted at even the name of the place when Alec first told her about what had happened. ‘The Red Hood’. It had stood out in her mind, mostly because of the ominous ‘Bad Wolf’ connotations. Well… it looked like those had finally come true. She’d been called here. The nothing seedy hotel where Alec’s wife had probably been quite sure she’d not be spotted by anyone that mattered. If she only knew how very public her little romp was about to become. Rose wondered how many times the woman entering the building had done something like this. Cheated on her husband. She shook her head.

_Probably as many as_ you _have._ a cruel part of her mind sneered at her. _Apparently you don’t have exclusive rights when it comes to cheating on your spouse,_ the voice spat.

“No! It wasn’t like that!” Rose said out loud, thumping the side of her head with the heel of her hand to dislodge the cruel thought.

The percussive abuse she’d dealt herself actually served to ground her for a moment, and she suddenly became aware that she’d said it out loud. Checking quickly to be sure she hadn’t called attention to herself, she breathed a sigh of relief when she found the street empty. She was alone, crouching along the side of a building, spying on the hotel across the way. Completely normal.

Normal? She almost laughed out loud with the absurdity of her position. She was sitting in the dark, spying on her bondmate’s ex-wife and her lover so she could save her current husband’s previous marriage and stop him from ever meeting her.

Still staring across the way, she realized she was smiling like a loon. What was she _smiling about_ , for God’s sake?! The grin wiped itself from her features as if it had been blown off by a strong wind. There was _nothing_ funny about what she was doing right now. She was saving her sanity. _Good luck with that!_ a jeering voice laughed in her mind.

She was about to give a rather scathing rebuttle (out loud, again, she realized), when a rather burly brown haired bloke arrived in a white four door. This must be him. He was obviously well built and some kind of professional as well, if the suit was anything to go by. _Well built is an understatement,_ one of her voices said seductively. _You’re a bloody slag… why don’t you just go offer yourself up to him? If he doesn’t show up to the room, maybe Alec’s slut wife will leave before the car gets broken into,_ the voice suggested. “Shut up,” she whispered back fiercely.

For a moment the man paused and his gaze jerked in her direction. Swiftly ducking back beyond his line of sight, she waited tensely, barely breathing. When she didn’t hear footsteps approaching, she carefully peeked out again. Relief washed over her as she watched the man disappear into the building, and she let a tense breath out.

Alright. She had to get it together and keep it together. This was it. She’d wait another couple of minutes and then make her move. She needed to make sure the pair were, uh… well and truly ‘engaged’ before she moved in, in case one had to return to their vehicle for some reason or other.

Her plan was simple. Move in, break into Hardy’s vehicle, take the locket, then wait until the real thieves came. Once they’d taken whatever else they could find and run off, she’d return the locket to the vehicle back where the Detective had left it. They’d find the vehicle burgled in the morning, but the locket would be there, safe and sound and ready to accuse the murderer with it’s presence.

It was a simple plan, and one that should be easy to pull off. She had experience with Torchwood and from them she’d learned how to be stealthy, quiet and get the job done. She’d also had experience with Jackie Tyler and from her she’d learned to always keep an eye on the keys when Jackie got out of the car or they’d be left on the dash, the passenger seat, or in the trunk. It was the lead up to that particular life lesson that had taught her how to open a locked car door with a coat hanger… a skill that was going to come in particularly handy tonight.

Pulling out the folded metal coat hanger from her back pocket, she was about to move out when a soft, lulling voice played through the her mind. _Rose, love…_ The Master. _This is foolish. Why… why do you want me gone? Why? You need me. And I need you, Rose. So much. Please don’t do this,_ he pleaded. He wasn’t pushing in her mind now. He was entreating. Begging.

Rose faltered. She _did_ need him. She could feel it. The lonely cavernous ache that stood empty waiting for him was eating her up inside. _I’ve been… insistent in your mind, but only because I was afraid, love. I can’t lose you. Don’t you see? I was just frightened. Terrified, really. YOU are what defines me. If I lose you… I lose all that I am. Please, Rose. Come to me. Please._

The dulcet tenor of his voice pulled at her, inviting… no, insisting… that she listen to him. That she do what he was requesting. _Go to him. You need him too! Aren’t you tired of the pain? The uncertainty? Let him make it all clear for you,_ her mind insisted.

_But_ is it your mind? Really? a skeptical voice chimed in.

Was it? She… she didn’t know.

_Of course it is_ , another part of her insisted. _You need him. You need him like you need to breathe. He is your… your_ everything _! Don’t you see that?_

“I don’t know,” she said aloud. The noise of her own physical voice jolted her and for a moment she was disoriented. Looking around, she realized she was now standing on the sidewalk, her fingers quickly dancing along the screen of the vortex manipulator on her wrist. Cursing, she pulled her fingers back from the screen as if she’d been burned. Adrenalin pounded through her. He… he’d been distracting her! The Master had been distracting her while manipulating her at the same time! He was going to _make_ her go to him.

Hot rage engulfed her with the realization, and, closing her eyes, she mentally transported herself to stand in front of the buckling white barrier that was the only thing standing between her and the Master in her mind. Gathering her anger into one momentous ball , she hurled words at the man behind the wall as loudly as she could, _I will NEVER come to you! LEAVE. ME. ALONE!_

The pressure from his side of their connection suddenly built to new proportions, making her have to jump to defend her crumbling structure. Pieces of it rained down on her as she pushed her full force up against it. She had to defend it at all costs. If he won...

Then, from outside her mind, she heard quiet laughter. Unable to open her eyes for fear the real world might distract her from the encompassing task of keeping the Master at bay, she tried to ignore the stimuli.

“What’s this, then?” a man’s voice said rather ominously.

“She’s high, mate,” another male voice chimed in.

The men laughed.

The Master’s force was unrelenting and the pressure pushing into her mind from the other side of the rapidly weakening wall was merciless. Every ounce of strength she had in her was being consumed by her attempt to hold him off.

A brush of fingers along her neck and a sharp tug at her waist alerted her that all was far from well in the physical world. It was when a hand grabbed at her breast and wetness trailed along her jaw that she knew she could ignore the very real physical assault she was suffering no longer. Trying desperately to offer only the most meager amount of energy to assessing her physical situation, she opened her eyes.

“Oi! You’re awake now, are you?” the shorter of the two youngish men breathed sourly in her face as his hand pawed at her breast.

“Come on, mate… let me have a go,” the taller man to her right sang in a needy voice.

“Fuck off. Go find your own whore,” the first man said. “I’ve got the perfect place to take mine,” he smiled, the smell of booze permeating even through his skin.

Fuck! She was going to be raped! A sick feeling rolled through her as she closed her eyes again, realizing she was still losing ground against the Master. Gathering her inner strength again, she continued to try to keep the barrier from tumbling completely, even while she could feel the man in the world outside moving her… making her walk…

The battle raged on in her mind and she was slowly slowly losing ground despite her best efforts. She couldn’t… she didn’t _dare_ turn her attention from the war she was waging, or all would be lost. She knew it without a doubt.

That’s when she felt the cold press of metal against her back and heard a solid click. Daring to open her eyes, she realized where she was. Leaning against Beverly Hardy’s vehicle even as the man who’d been leading her along the street broke into the car. Suddenly very aware of what was about to happen, she quickly debated. If she expended much more attention to this worm she’d be lost. Her mind would be gone. If she didn’t…

The snake in question suddenly pressed his body against hers, crushing her against the side of the car as he slid his thick fingers down to push against the seam where her jeans covered her mons. Without thinking, she trailed her hands up to his hair, as if to make nice. The sick fucker moaned, “Oh… you like this, baby, don’t ya?” as he dipped his head down to lick along the underside of her jaw.

That’s when she wrapped her fingers in his hair and pulled with all her might.

“FUCK!” the bastard screamed, impulsively letting go of Rose and staggering backward. Taking the only opportunity she knew she’d have, she darted to the side and away from the lecherous arse, running as quickly as she could and simply praying the Master didn’t completely break through her flimsy barrier right then.

Suddenly, hands grabbed at her waist and she was swung in a circle with the momentum of her attempted escape. “Oi! Where do you think you’re going, then?” the other young man said, stopping her progress abruptly. She was about to protest when the cool metal of a knife slid against her neck, pressing there insistently as the taller bloke held her facing outward. “I think you’ve got some work to do before you’re done for the night,” he said tightly, even as he pushed his sick solidness against her bum.

She wanted to fight back. She wanted to scream for help. She wanted to do all sort of things to help herself. But that was the moment the wall came tumbling down in her mind and her own free will was lost.

 


	15. Chapter 15

Author's Notes:

Okay folks it gets quite graphic from here with regards to non-con and violence. Please dont press ahead if this is a trigger for you. Feel free to message me for a basic plot outline of this chapter if youd rather skip it.

For those choosing to read on were heading into some seriously deep waters here...  


****

### Identity Theft - Chapter 15: Confrontation

The Doctor managed to land the TARDIS smoothly despite his thoughts being thoroughly distracted by Rose’s situation. After meeting Rose’s, er… other Doctor… he’d followed the manipulator’s trail in the vortex to Sandbrook. On seeing the date and location in which he’d landed, his heart rates sped up. The date and place scrolling across the screen were firmly burned in his mind thanks to Alec’s trauma around the incident. It was the evening the locket was stolen. The beginning of the end of Alec’s life in Glasgow.

Surely the Master wouldn’t make her come here. She couldn’t be here. There was nothing she could _do_ here that the Master would benefit from. If she somehow managed to stop the locket from being stolen… no. The Master would know as well as he that if the locket didn’t disappear from Beverly’s car it would bring Reapers. Any Time Lord would be able to tell it was a fixed point by even thinking about it. Changing that moment in history would destroy the fabric of time. No… even the Master knew better.

But if the Master wasn’t responsible for bringing her here, that meant she was doing this of her own volition. She was doing this against even her own instincts as a Time Lord. But… any Time Lord faced with such a situation would turn and high tail it away as quickly as possible. Even considering such a plan was enough to set a Time Lord’s teeth on edge.

Then he remembered what his other self had said in London. _“She hadn’t betrayed me. But she was insistent. She said she was going to make sure that would never happen.”_ His breath stopped. Rose really wasn’t in her right mind. Her body was surely screaming to her about the _wrongness_ of what she was planning to do, but she wasn’t even heeding that intense internal warning. “Her mind… she’s barely hanging on,” his double’s voice chimed in his mind.

Now, running through the streets of Sandbrook toward the hotel, all he could think about was what incredible mental pain she must be in to consciously be disregarding the very real deep down aversion to trying to change a fixed point in time. To disregard such a primal instinct was desperately uncomfortable for a Time Lord and the closer one got to actually changing it, the more intense the feeling got. She must feel so desperate to escape the confusion in her mind that she’d turned to this. It pained him to think of it.

Rounding a corner down the street from the hotel, he heard voices up ahead. As he neared, he was able to make out muffled profanities and angry grunts coming from a rocking vehicle parked along the street in a spot quite devoid of light. Despite the gloom the Doctor could tell even from a distance whose car it was. Beverly’s. What was worse was that there was no question who one of the occupants inside it was. Rose.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

_Gouge his bloody eyes out!_ Reaching up to claw at the man’s face despite the increased pressure of her attacker’s hand against her throat, Rose managed to dig her nails deep into the man’s cheeks, pulling blood to the surface of his skin.

“You little bitch!” he howled, pulling his hand back and slapping her soundly before gripping her throat again as he roughly yanked her shirt up to expose her bra.

Barely able to breathe with the pressure of his grip against her neck, panic flew through her as the dirty bastard licked his lips hungrily at the sight of her lacey black bra. This was it. She was going to be defiled and there was nothing she could do about it. Just then, as she closed her eyes tightly to avoid having to look at the leering beast who was currently pulling the cup of her bra down to expose her breast, she heard a familiar voice.

“Can I see your license and registration?” The Doctor.

“What the…” the drunken bastard said, confused and angered further by the interruption.

“Step out of the car, please,” the Doctor instructed.

“What the fuck?!” the man said incredulously. “Fuck off, mate. Go peg your own bloody hing oot,” he said, turning his attention back to Rose with a leer.

The bastard got no further, however, as the Doctor’s hand firmly grasped the man’s shoulder, yanking him back and off of Rose so he toppled to the ground outside of the car.

“You’d better move along. Seems to me this is a pretty bad neighbourhood. Wouldn’t want to see you get hurt,” the Doctor said, his threat barely veiled.

“No… it seems _you_ don’t know how to mind your own goddamn business, you bloody arse piece!” the man said, pulling a pocket knife from his trouser pocket and stumbling to his feet to lurch toward the Doctor.

The Doctor himself stood with his back ramrod straight as he glared his would be attacker. Rose sat in the backseat of the car, watching as the man who’d nearly raped her advanced on her bondmate. She knew she should be terrified for him, but she felt oddly detached as she watched him. He’d be fine. He was always fine.

_And even if he isn’t… would it really be so bad? He is the only thing standing between us, love. The only remaining barrier to our happiness,_ the Master’s voice echoed in her mind. He was right. He was always right.

Crawling out of the car for a better view, Rose found the Doctor quickly dodging the swipes of the drunken man’s knife with ease. “Aren’t you getting tired?” the Doctor taunted lightly. “Surely you’ve got better things to do than dance with another bloke all evening,” he added, a little grin finding his lips as he once again easily stepped out of the way of another swing.

Just then, Rose spied the other lecherous man who’d attacked her come up behind the Doctor, his own knife raised and ready to strike. A sudden overriding need to protect the man who’d just saved her surged through her. She was about to scream to him to warn him, but the words died in her throat before she could utter them. _No… I think we’ll just let this one play out as the fates intended…_ she heard the Master sneer in her mind. Yes. It needed to play out, she realized, her earlier thought of helping him instantly banished.

That’s when time slowed. The Doctor’s face contorted in surprise as the knife entered his back and in a microsecond his wide eyes found hers. His mouth gaped open as he fell forward onto his knees. Behind him, the tall delinquent who’d stabbed him stepped back with a rather grand smile on his ugly gob.

Pain pounded through the bond Rose and the Doctor shared, awakening something very deep and primal within her. Something she was helpless to fight despite the Master’s commands and desires. Jumping to his side, she wrapped her arms around him. “Doctor…” she found herself whispering, knowing in her soul that her first and foremost priority was to help him. She wasn’t sure how, but his pain had amplified their bond and had somehow forcibly shattered the Master’s attempt to block it. It burned brightly and steadily in her mind making her utterly unable to deny it and powerless to pull away. For the first time since the Master had burrowed himself into her psyche, she saw the Doctor clearly. She was _his_. She had _chosen_ to be his. He never took her by force. She wanted to be bonded to him and he only ever loved her. There was no possible way she could deny it.

Despite his pain, the Doctor must have felt their bond strengthen as well, because on top of the agony that pulsed from him through their bond, Rose felt a surprised surge of joy. “Rose… I…” he said, trying to talk before breaking into a rattling cough. Blood flew from his mouth in small droplets landing on the front of her t-shirt.

“What the fuck are you waiting for?” the murderer behind the Doctor barked at the other man who looked like he was about to bolt. “Grab her! Let’s get the fuck out of here!”

The shorter man moved to Rose’s side and yanked her up by the arm making the Doctor fall out of her arms and onto the ground on all fours with a pained moan. “Let go of me!” she screamed, trying to pull away from his grip.

At that moment, from somewhere in the street behind Rose, the echoing grind and bump of a TARDIS landing filled the air. Swinging her around as he turned to face the source of the noise, the man gripping her arm suddenly gasped as a giant blob of white light pulsed and slowly began solidifying before them.

“What the fuck?!” the other man said, alarmed.

“It’s a fuckin’... OH MY GOD!” the one gripping her arm yelped.

“JESUS!”

Before them a giant Cyberman solidified, making the man holding Rose release both her and his knife before turning tail and bolting, his sidekick already ahead of him stumbling down the street as quickly as his drunken legs could carry him. They disappeared around the first corner they came to with their shouts of fear echoing down the street as they did so.

They were getting away, but it didn’t matter what they did, as far as Rose was concerned. All that mattered right now was the Doctor. Waves of agony pulsed through their bond, making her alert and less confused than she’d been in days. It was so clear what she had to do. She had to save him.

“Rose…” his voice gurgled as she kneeled beside him again, “...Run!” he said as urgently as he could, reaching for her. “Run, Rose!”

Alarms clanged in her mind through their bond now in addition to the roiling pain he was experiencing. He was begging her. Demanding. Run! RUN!

“I’m not leavin’ ya,” she promised, despite the pleading in his eyes. Whatever was going to happen, she knew she’d not leave him like this.

“Rose… please…” he whispered before coughing another half cup of blood from his lung.

“Oh… she’s not going anywhere… are you, Rose?” a sneering voice sang from over her shoulder.

Turning quickly, she found herself looking up at the smiling visage of the man she’d been dreaming of… the man she’d been fighting… the man she’d longed for. Seeing him now in person, part of her wanted to run like the Doctor had told her. Another part of her, though… a thoroughly controlled part of her… couldn’t move.

Reaching out, the Master stroked the side of her face and she gasped. It felt like a flaming hot ember had touched her cheek and with it a fire lit in her mind behind the connection she and the Master shared. “That’s right, love. I’m here. You’ll not have to suffer this fool for much longer,” he assured her. “Stand up,” he said, taking her hand.

Rose stood willingly and leaned into the hand now stroking her face. “Gods, Rose… you’re incredible. You resisted me. I don’t know how you did it, but it was a feat no other Time Lord had achieved before you,” he said almost lovingly, gazing into her eyes.

Rose could only manage a moan in response. The fire he’d ignited in her mind now rivalled the strength of the revitalized bond she and the Doctor shared. She could feel both the bond with the Doctor and her connection with the Master now warring for dominance.

“Poor, poor girl,” the Master cooed, bringing his other hand up so both cupped her face gently. “There’s so much going on in there. Your mind is nearly on fire with confusion. You shouldn’t have to suffer this, Rose,” he said, holding her face so she looked directly into his eyes. “I can help you. You want me to help you,” he said, earnestly.

“Yes,” Rose heard herself breathe, feeling her eyes prickle with tears.

Smiling softly, he trailed his fingers up tenderly so they touched her temples. Then he leaned in and pressed his lips to hers.

“ROSE!” she heard from somewhere behind her, followed by a racking cough.

The Master was her only focus now, though. His touch and his kiss blanketed her mind with unparalleled numbing bliss. His lips parted as he deepened the kiss and Rose followed suit, moaning as his tongue swept in to play against her own. The connection between them flared and there was no question now what she wanted. She wanted _him_.

Somewhere deep inside she wondered why this didn’t hurt. It had hurt when she’d kissed Jack and her husband. She wasn’t about to complain though. This was all she’d been waiting for since that first day she’d experienced his presence in the pool on the TARDIS. It was what she’d been craving. Him.

Her hands gripped him, one firmly ensconced in his hair and the other clasping at the soft fabric of the cloak he wore. It wasn’t enough though. She would never be able to get enough of him. Reaching to undo the clasp of his robe as her lips stroked his, she groaned in protest as he pulled back. A dark chuckle rose from him then.

“Soon, my love,” he said, hugging her firmly to his front while reaching around her to cup her arse. She gasped with the tight squeeze he gave her while he pointedly stared at the wounded Time Lord on the ground. “First though, we have to get rid of this piece of rubbish before he further stains the universe with his presence.”

Her attention momentarily shifted from the God-like creature before her to the man on the ground. They had to get rid of him. But… “Couldn’t we just… leave him?” she suggested, unsure exactly why she’d done so.

“Gods, Rose! Ever the fighter!” he said, looking at her incredulously. “You truly amaze me! You should have no more free will left at all, and yet…” he shook his head. “It seems it will take more for you to truly see that I am right in all things,” he sighed. “I didn’t want to do this while he was still alive, Rose, but it seems you’re fighting me to the end.”

“NO!” the Doctor’s voice cried from the ground before them. “You’ll kill her!” he cried breathlessly, clearly losing ground in his effort to stay conscious.

“What?” Rose said, her own voice sounding oddly distant.

“He knows that I want you, Rose. He knows it and he’ll say anything to stop that from happening. But you want it too, don’t you? I felt it. Pressed up against me… I could feel it in your mind. I could smell it on you, Rose,” he husked, his eyes dark and lidded as he pulled her to him again.

“But…” she said, unsure now why she was resisting.

“Rose… it will kill you!” the Doctor said, now panting with the exertion of trying to speak. “The Master… you can’t be… fully bonded to both of us…” he ground out.

“SHUT UP!” the Master shouted, his temper flaring so that he looked almost rabid. Casting Rose aside he rounded on the Doctor, lunging at him and grabbing a fistful of hair to pull his head up. Piercing him with a glare he shouted in the Doctor’s face, “YOU. ARE. DONE.”

Pushing the Doctor’s head roughly to the ground, the Master stood with a flourish, scooping up something from the ground before taking three large strides toward Rose, his eyes gleaming. His hand darted out and grabbed one of hers, making her suck in air with the force of his grip. Before she could even process what was happening, she found herself holding the cold steel of a knife handle. Looking down at the contents of her hand, her jaw dropped. Fear spiralled through her and she somehow knew it was her own. Through their bond, Rose could feel the Doctor’s energy waning as pain continued to rip through him. From the Master, all she could feel was fury. Cold, hard fury.

“Kill him,” the Master said, his jaw set and his eyes burning.

Yes. That would be best.

Turning toward the Doctor, she studied him. Lying face first on the ground but trying to get back up on all fours, he looked nearly gone already. Small tendrils of gold were beginning to seep from him now as lost his strength and fell to lie on his side with a pained moan. Looking up at her he entreated, “Please…” now barely able to create voice.

Rose hesitated.

“What are you waiting for?” the Master demanded. “This is what has to happen. You know it, Rose. You can’t deny it,” he commanded.

“Yes,” she answered. Without her even realizing she was doing it, her legs were carrying her closer to the Doctor and in moments she was kneeled beside him, the knife raised in the air with both her hands clasped tightly around the handle.

“That’s it, Rose. Do this. Do it for _us_ ,” he said darkly, walking over to stand beside her, as if to have a better view of the proceedings.

Muted anxiety filtered slowly through her. Looking down at the battered body of her bondmate… the man she’d thought she’d be tied to for centuries, she wondered why she wasn’t able to bring the knife down.

“Rose,” a whisper escaped his blood soaked lips, “I... love you,” he managed breathily.

Memories of a horrid dream she’d had in the TARDIS after they’d left Gallifrey flashed in her mind as she kneeled beside the Doctor, looking down into his ancient brown eyes. With the memories came a small plea from what was left of herself in her mind. _Don’t…_

Like in the dream, his breaths were becoming more and more laboured but _unlike_ her dream, with each exhale came a wisp of glittery golden mist.

A growl issued from beside her and in one fluid movement the Master had moved to the other side of the Doctor. Pulling back his foot, he kicked the Doctor in the back with such force that the Doctor’s body almost left the ground. A bloodsoaked cry of anguish flew from her bondmate with the brutal assault and white hot pain surged through their link in her mind. And with it came immediate clarity. The brilliant bold outline of truth solidified in her mind and the Masters control became muted.

Knowing she might not again have this sort of free will, she stood. With her own mind freed from it’s crushing captor for the moment, she knew what she had to do. Raising the knife again, her right hand wrapped tightly around the handle, she lunged at the Master, plunging the blade straight into his chest with all her strength.

Surprise found the Master’s features first and he let out a gasp as he flew backward and away from the Doctor, landing hard on the ground. Orange-tinged blood flowed around the knife still protruding from around where she assumed his right heart might be and he clutched at it’s handle in an effort to remove it. Watching him flounder, she stood transfixed… unable to believe what she’d just done.

Tears sprang to her eyes with the realization. She had tried to kill him. Her body began to shake as she watched him pull the knife from his own chest with a sick, sucking sound.

That’s when fiery hatred exploded in her mind, and while she knew it should be _her_ feeling that way toward him, she knew at once it wasn’t. Fury pounded at her through the connection the Master still had with her in her mind, and with it came a searing pain. Squeezing her eyes shut against the onslaught, her hands found the sides of her head and pressed against the imagined pressure she was sure was going to push her skull apart.

_You stupid, insignificant girl! I will have your mind for this and I promise to make you suffer in ways you can’t possibly imagine._

The pain was incredible and blinding and nearly breathtaking. She could feel her knees begin to weaken and she knew it was only a matter of time before she’d be unable to even move. A fresh wave of pain pulsed through from the Doctor, though, making her once more very aware that this was not time to give up. She had to help him. Even through the lancing pain and the muddled confusion that was left of her own mind, she knew he needed her and she wasn’t going to let him down.

Stumbling to kneel beside him, she whispered, “Come on, Doctor… I’ve got to get you out of here,” as she worked to get him into a sitting position. A mighty cough issued from him with the movement and more blood poured from his mouth. He was barely conscious now, and certainly not much help to her, but she could tell he was trying his best to cooperate.

Managing to get him to his feet while he leaned most of his weight on her, she started staggering down the street with him, now barely able to remain upright herself.

“The… locket…” the Doctor wheezed, turning to stumble away from her back toward Beverly’s car. Moving quickly to help him, she stopped him as he was about to try to bend down to lean into the vehicle. “Stop, Doctor… I’ll get it,” she offered, ducking into the car and casting about in the glove compartment for the necklace. Finding it wrapped in plastic, she pushed it down the front of her shirt and ducked back out to wrap the Doctor’s arm around her shoulder. “I’ve got it,” she assured him.

“The Master…” the Doctor croaked in her ear.

Rose looked over her shoulder and noticed he was no longer where she’d left him lying. He was escaping. All that was left in the street was the giant Cyberman-looking TARDIS.

There was no time to worry about that now, though. She had to get the Doctor back to his ship. They could worry about the Master when the Doctor was safe.

They continued down the street and from behind them the familiar whoop and bump of a TARDIS dematerializing echoed through the street. The Master was gone.


	16. Chapter 16

Author's Notes:

Youve all been so incredibly patient waiting for some relief from the (lets face it) unrelenting angst, so heres a _tiny_ bit for you. Not lots, but a bit.

Um enjoy?!  


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### Identity Theft - Chapter 16: Surgeon

Making their way to the TARDIS through the misty streets of Sandbrook seemed to be taking forever and with every step Rose was getting closer to panicking. Throughout their trek the Doctor had been moving in and out of lucidity, with the odd incoherent mumble leaving his blood-tinged lips as they lurched through the cool evening toward the ship. Occasionally he’d let out a weak cough in an effort to clear his damaged lung and with each wheezing exhale of breath she was sure he was losing a bit of life along with it.

What worried her more (was that even a possibility?) was that the golden sparkles of regeneration energy he had been exuding were diminishing rather than building. Shouldn’t he be be practically luminescent by now? As much as she was afraid he might regenerate, she was almost more afraid he might _not_. What if he _couldn’t_ regenerate? Could he have somehow damaged his regeneration… gland, or whatever Time Lords had?

God… why hadn’t she talked about this more with the Doctor before? It wasn’t like she hadn’t had the opportunity, for God’s sake! She’d travelled with a Doctor, she’d married a Doctor, and she was bonded to a Doctor! You think she’d have thought to ask one of them more about how this all worked before now! What if this was _it_?

No. She couldn’t let this be ‘it’. She had to save him. Doubt and fear found her hearts though as she continued pulling him along the street. He was losing ground and his hold on consciousness was tenuous. On top of that, the pain issuing through their bond was so strong now, it completely terrified her. How could he even _be_ conscious if he was going through such tremendous agony?

 

If there was anything that could possibly be good, though, it was that the Doctor’s continued pain shouting at her through their bond was helping to keep the Master’s influence on her mind at bay. With every painful step they took, Rose’s ability to maintain her own free will stayed strong. It was a horrid price to pay, but at least while she had control of her own mind she could keep the Doctor safe. That didn’t mean the Master had given up, though, by any means. The pain in her own head had abated a small bit… the Master had probably had to put a few of his mental resources into healing himself… but it was clear he wasn’t going to let up completely if he had a choice.

Rounding another corner, Rose cursed as she looked hopefully down the street only to find that the TARDIS was nowhere to be seen. The Doctor’s full weight was almost completely hers to carry now and she wasn’t sure how much longer she’d be able to keep going. She just kept thanking the universe that at least she had Time Lord biology now. If she hadn’t she’d have never made it even this far.

Finally, after turning yet another corner, Rose was able to make out the TARDIS ahead in the gloom standing proudly on a street corner, looking all the world like she belonged there. The sight of her always sent a thrill of joy through her, but right now she could just bloody cry with happiness.

The last few steps seemed to take for-bloody-ever, but finally she was leading the Doctor to the doors of the magnificent time ship. Pulling out her key and quickly opening them, she helped him in and wasted no time stumbling down the corridor to find the infirmary.

The TARDIS had conveniently moved the medbay closer to the control room and signified it’s location with a soft pulsing yellow light above the door, which Rose mentally thanked her for with both her hearts. As it was, she’d had to almost drag the Doctor into the room and to the nearest bed. Trying to be as gentle as possible, she helped him lie down on his side, which he did with a loud moan followed with a weak cough. Any power he’d been able to muster earlier to expel the accumulating blood in his lung had been spent. “Rose…” he rasped weakly.

“Yes, Doctor,” she said, smoothing his hair from his forehead. “I’m here.”

An intense look of concentration crossed the Doctor’s face and then all at once the residual regeneration energy that was circling him seemed to seep back into him through his clothes and skin. “Don’t want… regenerate…” he gasped. “The TARDIS…” he breathed before his eyes slid shut. He was out cold.

“Doctor!” she nearly shouted. What did he mean? He could decide if he wanted to regenerate or not?! But… there was no… hand or other, uh… Time Lord body part around he could funnel the energy into, so was he healing himself instead? Could he do that? What if he couldn’t?!

If he couldn’t, then she was his only hope. But… what could she do? He was bleeding internally… clearly his lung had been punctured. She wasn’t a bloody surgeon, for God’s sake! Standing and surveying the room, she looked around for something… anything… that might help him. Nothing stood out. There were so many gadgets and machines in here… any one of them might be the answer. “Help me?” she said up into the room, pleading.

On the other side of the infirmary a cupboard door popped open of its own accord. Hope bloomed in her. Bounding to the cupboard she found a handheld gadget with one smooth ceramic like surface and a handle with what she assumed was an activation button embedded in it. Moving quickly back to the Doctor’s side she wondered what exactly she was supposed to do with the tool in her hand. Her best guess was that it was some kind of… well obviously it was some sort of ‘healing’ device… but what was it supposed to heal? Was she supposed to put it over his skin?

Well, no matter what, she imagined the first step was going to be getting him out of his blood soaked kit. Whatever this was, it probably worked by directly making contact with his skin. She was going to have to get at his wounds.

Carefully pulling his arm from the sleeve of his jacket on the side he wasn’t lying on, she kneeled before him to unbutton his oxford. That done, she pulled his free arm out of the sleeve. She paused for a moment, cringing, hoping she hadn’t hurt him too much with the jarring movement of his arm. He didn’t respond at all, though, which she actually found even more worrying. He was completely unconscious.

Rolling him carefully onto his other side, she did the same with his other arm until his torso was only covered by his thin vest which was now orangey-red and sticky with his blood. Gently turning him onto his stomach to get a better look at his wounds, she pulled the fabric of the shirt up. A tight breath hissed through her teeth on seeing the damage with her own eyes. The carnage was impressive in the sickest way.

The wound was situated just below his shoulder blade on the right side of his back and she watched as small bubbles of air filtered through the blood filling the wound. If she hadn’t known already, there would be no doubt now that the blade had pierced his lung.

“Okay… now what?” she said softly to herself, surveying his ravaged back.

“Hello, Rose!”

Rose’s head snapped up on hearing the familiar voice. On the other side of the bed, a hologram of the man currently lying before her stood there looking downright cheery.

“If you’re seeing this, then I’ve managed to get myself into a bit of a mess. I’m assuming you’re in at least a bit better shape than I am at the mo, otherwise the TARDIS wouldn’t be showing you this to get you to try to help me.”

What? How dare he decide if she’s allowed to help him or not!

“And don’t roll your eyes at my hologram, Rose Tyler… you’d be no good to me if you were worse off than I was anyway,” he said with a knowing smile.

“Bloody know-it-all,” she whispered, a smile finding her lips despite everything.

“Let’s see… internal bleeding. Nasty, that. Still… there’s a good chance you can save me, I reckon, otherwise I’d have regenerated by now,” he lectured.

“Yeah, but what if you stopped regenerating?” she asked his hologram.

Of course the hologram didn’t answer… not that she expected it to. “Soooo… there’s a dermal regenerator in the cupboard above the junible respritokop… the, er… the blue gizmo with the green vial on top.”

“Got it,” she informed the hologram uselessly, still watching the recording.

“Once you have that,” he continued, “you can use it to heal the external wound by pulling it along slowly over the injury while holding down the button on the handle,” he said. The playback paused then, with the Doctor seemingly looking at her with interest. The TARDIS was obviously waiting to continue the recording until after she’d dealt with the Doctor’s external wound.

“Right,” Rose said, holding up the, uh… dermal regenerator, she took a deep breath and carefully touched it to the bottom of the wound. Depressing the button, a soft buzz and a blue light emanated from the side of the device that touched his skin. Clenching her jaw, she slowly began dragging the regulator over the bubbling wound. As it covered each patch of the ragged tear, it knitted the parted skin together leaving a smooth expanse of skin in its wake. It didn’t take long before the stab wound was healed, at least on the outside, and Rose allowed herself a steadying breath.

“Okay, now what?” she said, looking up at the hologram.

With that, the TARDIS resumed play of the recording. “Right. Good job!” the hologram Doctor smiled reassuringly.

Rose smirked. Only the Doctor would give her kudos without even seeing what kind of job she’d done. “Now. There’s a brilliant machine somewhere around here called a ‘Kilgravoks’. It’s a sort of… big cream coloured box with a rounded top. It’s sitting on a rolly-wheeled thingamabob… oh… just get the TARDIS to show you,” the hologram Doctor said, pulling his ear.

The recording paused again, and this time a light shone over a coffee table sized contraption in the corner of the room. Moving quickly to stand beside it, she looked at it skeptically. How was she supposed to use this thing? It looked bloody heavy. Sure, it was on rollers, but how was it going to help him? Was she supposed to lift him on top of it? Surely she wasn’t supposed to put _it_ on top of _him_.

Rolling it over to beside the bed, she studied it, looking for some indication on how to use it.

Behind her the Doctor’s recording started again. “It looks more intimidating than it is,” the recording assured her. “Now… before we start you’d better belt me onto the table. If I roll off during the procedure… well, let’s just say, it would be unpleasant,” he said seriously.

The recording paused again, giving her time to do what he’d told her to. The restraints were awkward to put on since he was lying on his front, but she managed to get his legs and arms strapped in.

“Right,” the Doctor’s voice chimed in again. “On the front end of the Kilgravoks there are two antigrav switches. Flick both of them up at the same time,” he instructed.

Moving around to the front of the large machine, she did as he instructed and the device immediately floated up from the cart it was sitting on.

“Molto bene! Now...there are two handles on either side of the device. Grab both handles on one side and just… swing it over me. There should be a blue light shining under the belly of the machine. Situate that light over the middle of the wound as closely as you can.”

Doing as she was told, Rose pulled the floating device over so it hovered on top of the Doctor’s stained back.

“Now you just turn it on! Big red button on the back. Can’t miss it!” his hologram smiled widely.

Rose shook her head in affection. What was with every single universe’s Doctor and ‘big red buttons’? Moving to the back of the large machine she found the button there as promised. She was about to push it when the Doctor’s voice chimed in again. “Oh… and Rose… I may, er… well, this device works likes a wonder, but I’m told it’s not a comfortable experience. I don’t know how my body will respond, but don’t turn off the machine no matter what, alright? And Rose… thank-you,” he added, the look on his face one of complete adoration.

The hologram disappeared then, leaving the room quiet. Right. Big red button. Biting her bottom lip, she steeled herself and pushed it. A deep vibrating hum issued from the machine but it didn’t move. The light under it, though, pulsed and spread so it covered a larger area of his skin… presumably the full area of his internal damage. So far so good. The Doctor didn’t look to be in any distress yet. A moment later, though, the light under the machine changed from blue to white and the deep hum it had been emitting changed to a high pitched whine.

The change in the Doctor was immediate. Still lying on his front, he began to shake and his body arched so his head was clean off the table and the bindings on his feet were pulled tightly. A keening wail issued from him as he strained against the straps holding him down. Rose, herself, let out a pained cry watching him and she could see now why he’d had to tell her not to stop the machine no matter what… because that’s exactly what she wanted to do. The piercing pain flying through him translated into a bright hot streak of urgency through their bond and Rose wanted nothing more than to drag that blasted machine off of him despite what he’d told her.

Just as she thought she wouldn’t be able to stop herself from doing just that, the machine’s whine lowered in pitch and the light under the device returned to blue. It continued to rumble ominously for a few moments, but under it, the Doctor’s body slumped back onto the bed.

Was that it? Was it over? The… Krogav… thing… then returned completely to it’s original deep rumble and the light illuminating the Doctor’s skin narrowed to cover only a small spot on his back. It _looked_ like it was done.

Tentatively moving to grab the handles on the side of the device, Rose waited for a moment to see if the Doctor’s hologram might pop up again to warn her not to move it or something, but the room remained silent. Carefully, she swung the machine back over the trolley it had originally been resting on and she flipped the antigrav switches down. Slowly, it lowered itself to rest back on it’s stand.

Moving back to the Doctor’s side, she quickly undid the bindings she’d affixed to him earlier and knelt beside him. His features were blessedly peaceful now as she smoothed his sweat soaked hair from his forehead. Closing her eyes, she leaned her own forehead against his. Letting her mind reach back to their bond, she sagged in relief. There was only a small hint of pain left there now… and calm. He was alright. Still unconscious, but alright. Tears stung her eyes under her closed lids. “I’m sorry, Doctor,” she whispered as a tear escaped to trail down her cheek.

_Oh… you’ll be sorry, my dear,_ the Master’s voice echoed in her mind. _But you won’t be sorry for him. You’ll be sorry you dared defy me. In moments your mind will be nothing but my tool for causing you unrelenting torment and you will wish you’d simply let me have my way with you in the first place._


	17. Teaspoon :: Identity Theft by Jellyneau

Author's Notes:

A few more chapters folks... we're getting closer to the end of this massive tale! That said, there's still more of the story to be told! Mind the ratings once again, please.

Now. Angst, angst, angst... a bit more angst... and then...

****

### Identity Theft - Chapter 17: Locket

The Doctor woke to the worried hum of the TARDIS in his ears and in his mind. Where… oh yes. The infirmary. The knife wound.

Gingerly turning to lie on his back, he placed his hand on his chest and tentatively pushed against his sternum and ribs. Nope… no more pain. Thank the Gods. It was a bit tender, but then, that was to be expected. Even Opalian technology couldn’t completely erase the effects of a lung penetrating knife wound.

Looking around he suddenly became very aware that he was alone. Casting his awareness back in a panic to find Rose in his mind he found a tumultuous whirl of confusion and pain flowing from her corner of his consciousness. Bolting upright, he threw his long legs over the side of the bed and pulled his blood crusted vest down to completely cover his chest. He had to find her.

Standing for a moment to try to get his bearings, he did his best to figure out what direction she had gone. Her energy was issuing from somewhere in the direction of the console room. Quickly rushing through the corridors, he got to the control room only to find it empty and the TARDIS doors wide open.

Flying to the doors he looked outside and his hearts stopped in his chest. The sky had been overcast and misty when they’d returned to the ship earlier, but now it was roiling in grey and black clouds. The wind was howling and rain pelted down in sharp angled daggers from the sky. Even though it was night, he knew that if the sun had been out it would not be visible at this moment. Reapers were coming.

Rose.

Heedless of the his current state of dress and the cold, pouring rain, he bolted out of the TARDIS doors and into the pitch of the night. The stinging rain bit at him as he ran and his newly healed lung protested the exercise, but none of that mattered. He had to get to her.

As he followed Rose’s trail through sheer awareness of her proximity, he felt the cloud of Rose’s mental torment through their bond. The Master clearly had survived her attack and now once again was a strong presence in her mind. He didn’t know how much influence he had over her now, but he certainly was there. The agony rolling through their bond was evidence enough of that. He was making her pay for what she’d done.

He was getting closer now, and he knew without even needing to check where she was headed. There was only one reason reapers might be threatening at this moment. The locket.

Rounding the final corner to the hotel, he could make out the outline of Beverly’s car in the rain. Looking about he quickly spotted a huddled shape sitting on the ground against the wall of the building nearest the car. Slowing to a jog, he began walking as he neared his sopping wet girl sitting on the pavement and his hearts broke.

Sitting dejectedly with water dripping from the wet strands of hair around her face, Rose gripped the plastic bag containing the locket in her hands, just staring at it as though entranced.

“My head hurts,” she intoned, not looking up. He was sure that was an incredible understatement, but he didn’t say so.

“I know,” he offered instead.

“I… I tried to put the locket back in the car, but…”

“...But you couldn’t?” he finished.

“Yeah,” she agreed mournfully. Looking up then, her eyes met his and his worry for her amped up even further. Even in the dim light, he could see the whites of her eyes were tinged orangey-red and the Doctor knew then that the Master had been relentless in his effort to harm her. She’d obviously been doing everything in her power to resist the Master’s control… so much so that her blood pressure had skyrocketed causing blood vessels to burst.

Anger blew through him like an explosion on seeing it. If that bastard had been standing there at this moment, he knew there would be little he could do to stop himself from killing him with his bare hands.

“I… I have to do it, Doctor. Don’t you see? He’ll die. I’ll… I’ll go mad. And… the Master… I… I can’t stop him. I don’t even… I don’t want to stop him. And I know you’re just trying to hurt me… but sometimes I don’t think that. But if I don’t… I’m sorry…” she trailed off, still looking completely confused.

“Rose… I think I know a way we can get rid of the Master in your mind,” he said tenderly, willing her to hear him through the melee in her mind.

“NO!” she barked suddenly, her firey eyes locking with his. “Not just him! Everyone! _No one_ can be in my mind! YOU can’t be in my mind!” she demanded. “I… I’ve gone completely barmy, Doctor! Can’t you see?! And I promised him I wouldn’t…” she said, shaking her head and squeezing her eyes shut, obviously warding off a renewed mental attack by the Master.

“I can get everyone out of your mind, Rose. If you want. I… I don’t know how, but I’ll find a way. I promise. But this…” he said, indicating the locket in her hands, “... this isn’t the way. This is a fixed point in time, Rose. It can’t be changed. Not without bringing Reapers. You know it. You can feel it,” he insisted, touching her shoulder.

Looking up into his eyes as if trying to decipher what he’d said, she whispered, “You can? You can get out of my head?”

He swallowed back a lump of pain on hearing the question, but answered as truthfully as he could, “I… I’ll find a way, Rose. If that’s what you really want, I’ll make sure it happens,” he vowed.

Relief played over her features despite the continued torment in her mind, and looking back at the locket in her hands, she seemed to consider something. Looking back at the Doctor, she tentatively held it out for him to take.

Allowing himself a deep breath, the Doctor took it from her with a wan smile and stood, placing the offending item in the pocket of his trousers. Immediately the rain slowed, the wind died down and the roiling clouds above slowed their churning. Relief flooded through him. That was one crisis averted, but the real problem was still far from solved.

Holding out his hand, he wiggled his fingers in invitation. This was it. He held his breath, waiting to see if Rose would be able to overcome the deep seated hatred of him that the Master was pushing through her right now. He knew, at the very least, that Rose would still be very reticent to put her faith in him, but he couldn’t blame her. She currently had a madman screaming at her in her mind and the sharp pain in her head was likely making it impossible to even concentrate on even breathing let alone reevaluating how she felt about him.

To his immense relief, Rose slowly reached for his hand and allowed him to pull her to stand but as soon as she was on her feet she yanked her hand back from him as if she’d been burned. The action threw a spike of hurt through the Doctor’s hearts but he didn’t say anything. Her mind was burning with the Master’s assault and her confusion and fear played through their bond making him ache.

It was then he made a decision. He hated himself for even considering this, but he couldn’t… he _wouldn’t_ bear her suffering any longer. Not when he knew he could help. Turning to face her, he quickly raised his hands to her temples. Rose’s eyes flew open wide in surprise and fear and she instantly tried to mentally block him. It shattered his hearts knowing he was currently doing this very much against her will. This was exactly what he’d been accusing the Master of. Mental assault. This was different, though, he kept telling himself. The Master was doing it to harm her. To control her. He… he just needed to stop her pain. It was imperative… everything in his soul was screaming at him to help her. He had to.

Pressing ahead, knowing her mental walls were so weakened right now she stood no chance, he quickly climbed over her attempt to stop him and he made his way into her mind, sedating her lightly as he went so she’d not keep fighting him. What he found took his breath away and made his blood boil at the same time. Her mind was a train wreck. Her mind, as he’d experienced before, was normally a remarkably orderly warm series of inviting hallways, for lack of a better analogy. Like most sentient beings, it was normally dotted with a series of doors… some that she usually kept open and others that she had permanently kept closed. Now though, all the doors in her now darkened hallways were flung open… and most had obviously been broken into forcefully. Memories he knew she’d never willingly leave out in the open currently flowed into her mental halls and stood boldly before him as he moved past them.

_“You fuckin’ slag!” some young dark haired bloke yelled, his hand raised to strike a cowering, obviously younger, Rose._

“I heard her Mom’s a whore,” a petite blonde girl whispered to a shorter curly haired lad as a teenaged Rose stood at a locker in the school hall.

“Does it need saying?” a version of him intoned sadly as Rose stood looking completely lost between him and a second version of him.

“I have to keep living while I’m alive, Rose. Otherwise I might as well already be dead,” he watched a very ill looking version of himself say as he held Rose’s hands in his.

He tried not to examine the memories…which was difficult, as many practically screamed at him as he passed them by… but he knew she’d never normally leave these private moments out for such scrutiny. This was the Master’s doing.

Once again, his fury mounted. It was very likely that if he ever encountered that worm again in person, he’d end him in the most painful way possible.

Trying to quickly move past all the memories spilling from the rooms in her mind, he finally found the connection the Master had forged. Working quickly, he placed a barrier up against it and attempted to fortify it as best he could with scraps of material lying around Rose’s mind. Standing back after having erected as solid a barrier as he could manage with what she had available, he slowly withdrew from her mind. He’d put up a blockade against the Master, but it wouldn’t hold for long. It was time to finish this once and for all.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

The Master hovered over her, dressed in a simple grey hoodie and black trousers, his gleaming white teeth bared with his sick, smug smile. “This is how I imagined you, Rose. Under me. Bared to me…” he leered, his eyes raking slowly over her body.

Embarrassment and humiliation seeped through her as she realized she was completely naked. How had this happened? He told her he’d help her. He told her he’d get rid of the Master.

“Oh… he tried, love. He tried to rebuild the mental wall you’d so inefficiently built the first time, but it took no time before I’d overcome it. He couldn’t possibly have thought anything he constructed could keep me from you,” he whispered in her ear before ducking down to kiss the underside of her jaw, letting his full weight descend on her. His firm interest in her pressed nauseatingly against her centre making bile rise in her throat and tears spring to her eyes.

He’d lied. The Doctor said he had a way to stop him. To get him out of her head. But he’d lied and now here she was, a slave to the Master yet again. Maybe this time there was no escape.

“Of course he _lied_ , you gullible fool. Why did you think he’d suddenly start being truthful with you? You’ve been nothing but a possession to everyone who has ever been with you. Jimmy… Mickey… the Doctor… and now me. It’s what you’re good for. Manual labour and a shag,” the Master sneered cruelly as he continued to writhe on top of her. Then, pulling himself down her body he took her breast in his mouth and gave it a hard pulling suck. She tried to fight him off but her limbs were uselessly paralyzed. He controlled her. She was his. A sick wave of helplessness flowed over her and she let out a sob.

“Now, now, my love. No need to cry. I suppose that _was_ a bit cruel, even though it was the truth. Let me make it up to you” he said darkly.

Just then, a mild tingling feeling swept through Rose’s mind. The Master must have felt it as well, as he paused his gyrating and focused his attention outward. The tingling intensified to a vibrating buzz and with it the Master’s eyes grew wide. “No! NO!” he shouted in both surprise and anger. “You can’t have!” he yelled, baring his teeth in a furious snarl.

Above her, the Master’s image began glittering and becoming translucent as the buzzing increased in intensity. What started as a mild vibration morphed into almost painful pricks and stings in Rose’s head, and as it did so the Master’s visage became more and more opaque. His screams echoed and reverberated through her skull and his presence slowly became less and less heavy in her mind as his image faded more thoroughly before her. As the pressure of the Master’s will decreased, Rose slowly became aware that her own free will was climbing up from the depths of her consciousness, finally being allowed to surface after having been completely submersed in the Master’s dark intentions for so long. The feeling was desperately liberating. It was like she’d forgotten how to breathe but had suddenly remembered. As cool freedom washed over her mind, the pain the Master had wrought on her raw nerve endings abated and she was left to bathe in a pool of relief.

Tears welled in her eyes and she could feel them trail down the sides of her face to pool in her hair. She was free. Blessedly free.

“Rose?” a man’s voice said gently, pulling her from… wait. Was she sleeping?

Opening her eyes slowly, she took in the concerned face of her bondmate. “Doctor?” she whispered, blinking tears from her eyes.

“Oh, Gods, Rose!” he said, scooping her up into his arms and pulling her to him tightly. Warmth and relief flooded her mind through their bond and Rose swore she’d never felt anything as good in her life. Wrapping her arms around him as well, she breathed him in, letting his unique scent envelop her and heal her. Her head ached still, but his singular presence in her mind and the real physical closeness of his body wrapped around hers reassured her and soothed her ragged nerves.

Pulling back a bit from his comforting embrace, she looked around. Where were they? It took a moment for her brain to connect her surroundings to her memories, but the realization that she sitting on their bed on the TARDIS finally kicked in. Panic suddenly filled her. How come she still felt so confused? Was the Master still in there, messing with her mind? It didn’t feel like it… but… what if…? Looking up anxiously into the Doctor’s concerned brown eyes she asked, “Is he gone? For good?” What if this was only another reprieve? What if the Master was just waiting again… waiting to take over…

“It’s over, Rose. I promise,” he assured her, his hand gently brushing a stray strand of hair from in front of her eyes. “He’s gone and he won’t be back,” he promised.

Her eyes prickled again with tears of relief and a smile found her lips. “Oh, Doctor,” she said softly, stroking his cheek. “Thank-you. You… you never gave up on me. Even though I told you… I told you…” she choked, unable to finish that sentence. She’d told him she didn’t want him in her head. She told him he was no better than the Time Lords who had raped her mind. She’d said such horrid things…

“Hey… hey,” he said, tipping her chin up with his finger so she’d look at him. “This was NOT your fault, Rose. This was him. The Master drugged you. He _violated_ you. He took your mind and he… he raped it,” anger and hurt both seeping into his words. “He did this to you. To _us_.”

His face was so sure… he seemed so convinced. But… “But I should’ve… I could’ve tried harder to get him out. At first I just let him in, Doctor! You knew there was something wrong with me, but… I just thought…”

“Listen to me, Rose,” he said, interrupting her. “You have to understand. He wasn’t just controlling you when you were aware of it. He was controlling you subconsciously as well. The thoughts you had… none of them were completely your own. You may have had some sparks of free will… you may have even managed to make your own decisions at times… but even those were tinged with confusion. No one is meant to be even partially bonded to two people. It would drive anyone mad. The very fact you were able to keep any semblance of sanity says more about you than you could ever know, Rose Tyler.”

“I just… I’m so sorry…” she continued.

“Rose… do you still think those things of me?” he interrupted, his expression one of sureness.

His question shook her. Of course she didn’t. “No, Doctor. I… I know you’d never hurt me on purpose. That’s… that’s not who you are,” she said surely, willing him to believe her.

He smiled then and leaned forward to kiss her forehead softly. “You see? None of those thoughts were your own, Rose. I know it. And I won’t ever blame you for them, yeah? Please believe me,” he entreated, looking deeply into her eyes.

“I… I don’t deserve you…” Rose said, emotion clogging her throat.

“No, Rose. I don’t deserve _you_. But despite that… despite knowing you could do so much better than me... I could never give you up. I’m a better man than I’ve ever been because of you. While you were… gone… I was lost. I’ve never felt so alone in my lives,” he admitted, hugging her close again.

Rose responded immediately by wrapping her arms around him tightly. She never wanted to let him go again. She wanted to hang on… cling on to him… until the end of time. Too soon, though, he pulled back from their embrace. “You should rest, Rose. The Master is gone from your mind now, but he left you with some mending to do in there,” he smiled tenderly, gently tapping her head. “You’ll need a lot of sleep over the next few days so your body can heal,” he advised.

A moment of panic seized her at the thought of being alone. “Doctor… could you stay? Maybe just… lie with me?” she said, trying not to sound desperate.

A warm smile passed over his lips. “Of course, Rose. I hadn’t planned to let you out of my sight anyway, you know,” he advised her. Tugging his filthy vest over his head and stripping himself down to his pants, he climbed onto the bed. Before pulling the sheets back to climb in, though, he glanced at her, nervously scratching the back of his neck. “I hope you don’t mind… I took the liberty of taking off your wet clothes. Weelllll… most of them,” he clarified, gazing down a bit to acknowledge the lacey bra and knickers she still wore.

Both affection and sadness brimmed in her hearts as she realized he hadn’t wanted to just presume she’d be alright with him removing all her clothing. The poor bloke had been pushed away from her so much… he probably was scared to imagine she might ever be able to completely accept that kind of closeness with him again.

Pulling back the sheets herself and patting the mattress beside her, she said, “Thank-you. You could’ve done the whole kit, you know. S’not like you haven’t seen it all before,” she smiled, biting her lip.

Giving her a lopsided grin back, he accepted her invitation and climbed in the bed behind her, pulling her back to his front. “True,” he said, kissing her hair. “I just… I wanted to make sure…” he trailed off. “Well.. you know,” he finished.

“I know. I’m so sorry that this happened... that you ever had a reason to doubt my real feelings for you, Doctor. I love you. I hope you know that. And no one will ever take that away from us, yeah?” she said, realizing it sounded like a question. And she supposed it was. The Master had come so very close to doing just that. Taking away the one thing she had never assumed could be taken from her. Her true feelings for the man who meant the universe to her.

“No, Rose. No one can take that from us. No one ever will,” he promised, hugging her tighter. As he pulled her closer, she slowly relaxed into his embrace, enjoying the beat of his hearts on her back and the sound of his soft breaths near her ear. Soothing affection and warmth filtered from him through their bond reassuring her once again that he forgave her for what she’d said and done while the Master ruled her mind. He loved her and even though she knew how blessed she was before all this happened, she knew that fact even more solidly now.


	18. Chapter 18

Author's Notes:

Oh crap. I friggin cried writing this stupid chapter. Not because I think Im so amazing or anything just well, youll see  


****

### 

Identity Theft - Chapter 18: I don’t want to go

Rose woke a few hours later to an empty bed and panic flew through her. She tried to quell it but her mind still felt raw and even though she knew she still wasn’t thinking very clearly, she couldn’t help anxiety from filling her.

From behind the closed door of the loo Rose heard a worried, “Rose?” filter through the door and a moment later the door flew open revealing a hastily towel covered Time Lord. “Are you okay?” he asked, water dripping down from his hair into his eyes as he quickly took in the room, looking for any sign of what had her so anxious.

Relief seeped through her. “I… I’m sorry… I just woke up and you were gone. I got nervous,” she admitted, biting her bottom lip. God. She hated being so bloody needy.

His own expression echoed her relief and he smiled softly. “Oh. Well, I’m right here,” he assured her warmly. “I woke up a while back but I didn’t want to wake you… I just wanted to wash the… well, I was still a mess from earlier,” he shared, moving to sit on the bed beside her. “And I know it’s awfully soon after… well, after what happened, but I have to check in with Romana. The Master… he had almost the entire council under his control the same way he had you controlled. Romana had a plan involving the same antidote I gave you, but I have to make sure she’s alright,” he shared, worry playing over his features.

“Of course,” she said, sitting up, pulling the covers down to climb out of bed.

“Where are you going?” he asked, looking thoroughly confused.

“We’ve got to make sure Romana is okay, don’t we?” she asked, now understanding he hadn’t thought she’d be coming with him.

“Er… yeah… but, Rose, you just… you’re still…” he floundered.

Interrupting, Rose touched his hand. “I’m not letting you do this alone, Doctor. I’ll be alright. Anyway… I’m guessing it was Romana who figured out how to help me?” she asked.

“Well, yes… but…”

“Then it’s settled. I’m helping. Besides, I’m not about to let you out of my sight. I missed you so much, Doctor,” she said, gently stroking the side of his face.

Leaning into her hand, he closed his eyes for a moment. “Rose Tyler… you’re gonna drive me barmy, you know that?” he warned her, obviously about to back down from his argument.

Giving him a tongue touched smile, she hummed her agreement. “Yeah… probably,” she agreed. “So… when do we leave?” she asked.

Shaking his head, he stood and reached for her hand. “Right after I feed the fledgling Time Lord,” he said decidedly.

As if on cue, Rose stomach growled rather loudly making her blush pink. The Doctor chuckled. “Right. Banana pancakes?” he asked, waggling his eyebrows, as if that would be enough to entice anyone to eat.

“Sure,” she agreed, grinning. “Meet you in the galley in a few? I just want to wash up too,” she shared, realizing she too was probably quite a hygienic wreck.

The Doctor’s eyes looked her over, his gaze definitely lingering on the tops of her lacey bra covered breasts for longer than was strictly necessary… a fact Rose hadn’t missed it. “See anything you like, Doctor?” she said, a smile permeating her voice.

“Weelllll… now that you mention it...” he started, pulling her to him to wrap his arms around her.

“Oi! I thought we had to get in touch with Romana?” Rose grinned.

“We do,” he said, leaning in to plant a series of targeted kisses to _the_ spot just under her ear.

Instantly her knees turned to jelly and a swoop of arousal made her stomach dip. Moist proof of her interest in him found her knickers as he continued his attentions, but very very reluctantly she pulled away. They _did_ have a lot to do before they could… well… before they indulged in… _that_.

An adorable pout found the Doctor’s lips as she did so, but he didn’t fight her. Sighing, he took her hand. “Right. Come on, Ms. Tyler. Planets to save, evil twats to depose and all that,” he grinned.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

It turned out they hadn’t needed to actually go to Gallifrey, though the Doctor was still tossing the idea around despite Romana’s assurances. After having released the him from his cell, Romana reverted to her controlled state for a while before she was able to claw her way back to dominance in her mind again. Not wasting the opportunity, she’d injected herself with the antidote and it wasn’t long before she had full control over her mind again. Discovering the Master had left Gallifrey, she used the opportunity to administer the cure to others on the council who then helped her further distribute it.

The Master must have quickly become aware that he’d lost control, as he hadn’t returned to Gallifrey after leaving Sandbrook, and it was likely he wouldn’t ever return there now. He was wanted on some very serious charges, not the least of which were treason and murder. For now, Gallifrey was safe from his insanity, though the Doctor didn’t like the fact that he was still roaming freely in the galaxy, likely wreaking havoc. At least the authorities were looking for him, though, and for now that would have to be good enough.

With Gallifrey safe, there were only a few things left to wrap up around this whole misadventure, and neither were particularly comfortable situations for him. The first… well, it was definitely something Rose had finally talked him into dealing with. If it were up to him… to be honest… he wasn’t sure he’d have ever actually done it.

The second… actually, it really wasn’t anything to do with him. Not directly. That didn’t stop him from worrying though. It was going to be one of the hardest things Rose will have ever had to face, and he knew she needed him to be there for her through it. He just hoped he would be enough.

 

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

 

The sound… that sound… the boom and echoing reverberating clunk...

His eyes opened slowly and he looked around the room. Nothing. Rassillon… he was fucking hallucinating now. Fantastic.

He closed his eyes again and had almost drifted off when he heard the room door creak open before it closed quietly again. Silence followed. Peeling his eyes open once more, he was surprised to find Rose standing beside the bed.

“Doctor,” she said softly, taking his hand in hers.

“Rose? I thought… you went home… to sleep?” he whispered in short, panted breaths. Not that he was trying to. It was pretty much all the energy he could muster now. Producing voice had become too taxing.

Rose smiled that soft smile she seemed to reserve only for him. “I did. Didn’t really sleep much that night though, if I remember right,” she said softly, smoothing his hair back from his forehead.

His eyes widened. This wasn’t his Rose. “Rose? You’re…are you…”

“Yeah, Doctor. I’m fine now,” his wife’s slightly older self shared. “I’m good. It’s… it’s a very long story, but you were right. The Doctor… the _other_ Doctor… he helped me. The Master is gone,” she assured him before planting a light kiss on his knuckles.

He closed his eyes in relief and let the feeling filter through him. He’d been so unsettled, so worried since she’d left him that day… since the other Doctor followed her. How could he… move on… if he didn’t know she’d be okay? How could he leave her to face the Master… to face madness on her own? The sting of tears threatened under his closed lids and he fought them. If this was truly the last time she saw him, he didn’t want her remembering him like that.

“I… I just wanted to say,” Rose started before emotion seemed to cut off her words.

“Rose… you don’t have… to say anything,” he offered with laboured breaths, trying to assure her. She was safe. That’s all he cared about. All he really needed to know.

“No, Doctor. I wanted to tell you that I’m sorry I worried you. I know I must’ve scared you, and I’m so sorry. The last thing you needed to worry about was me. It was selfish of me to come back and I…” she faltered, tears welling.

“Hey,” he said, trying to squeeze her hand in reassurance, “Listen. You’re here now. And knowing… that you’re safe… that you have… centuries ahead of you… I’m so grateful, Rose,” he managed. “I couldn’t have… asked for more… from the universe than that,” he said, emotion now clawing at his throat as well.

Nodding, probably not daring to speak for fear of sobbing, Rose leaned over and kissed his forehead softly, then leaned her head against his for a long minute before pulling away. Tears now trailed down her cheeks and it broke his heart. He didn’t want this for her. She’d already seen him die once. This wasn’t… it just wasn’t right. This was a chance to make a new final memory of himself for her.

“So, I met the… other Doctor. Bit rude. A bit ginger too. Figures,” he smiled, trying to lighten the mood. Rose allowed herself a watery smile.

“Yeah,” she said, looking down at her hands. “He’s not you, though,” she croaked, the damn finally breaking. A full sob wracked her body as she stood before him.

Reaching his arms out as much as he could, he beaconed her to lie with him. She did so without a second thought. It was something they’d been doing since he entered hospital, and even though it was a long time ago for her, she clearly fell right back into the comfort of it as she cried against him on the bed. “Shhhh,” he murmured into her hair as he feebly stroked her back. There was so little he could actually do for anyone now in this state, but he could do this. And it felt so good to be needed.

“I miss you so much,” she admitted, sniffling and still weeping into his chest.

“Quite right too,” he breathed, pressing a kiss onto the crown of her head. “But, Rose…” he said, “...in a way, you have me. That… other Doctor… _your_ Doctor… he’s… well, he’s not stictly me… but if I could… choose anyone for my wife… to be with in the future… it would be him,” he said, wishing his voice would cooperate and help him sound as confident about this as he felt.

He thought he may have heard a gasp of breath from Rose with his comment. “I mean it, Rose. He’s… he makes you happy. Am I right?” he asked, pretty sure he already knew the answer.

“Yeah,” Rose said softly without looking up.

“Then... that’s what I want for you, Rose.” Nothing he’d ever said had ever been more true. There was no denying he would rather be the one sharing the rest of time with with her, but that wasn’t an option. He had been angry about that for a long time, but now, seeing her here, still grieving… he needed more for her. He needed to know she would move on. That she’d live a wonderful life. And it wasn’t just a trite saying that he wanted her to have one. He really, really did. He needed her to. In his memory.

Looking up, Rose’s young, shining eyes met his own tired, ancient ones. “I love you, Doctor. I’ll always love you,” she promised.

“I know. And no matter... where you go, Rose… I’ll be there. Loving you. And part of me.. will stay here with you… in him. Believe that, yeah?” he entreated, he breath barely supporting the words now.

“Oh, Doctor,” Rose choked, sliding up to kiss his cheek. Closing his eyes, he did his best to imagine she was kissing his lips instead. It was impossible, he knew… she was bonded. But he could imagine.

Then she did something he honestly hadn’t expected. Reaching her fingers up to touch his temples, she slid into his mind. A gasp left him with the unexpected, incredible closeness and he nearly sobbed. Warmth touched every corner of every neuron she passed by in his brain and with every nerve ending she touched he felt himself getting lighter and lighter until he was gloriously free of his body and floating in the bath of her adoration and love.

He knew this wasn’t his time. He still had to say good-bye to _his_ Rose. This Rose before she’d suffered his loss. And he still had more to say to her… so much more.

Loving everything about this moment, he found it incredibly difficult to admit to himself that it had to end. But it did. He knew the longer he basked in her warmth, the harder it would be to end it, so finally, after another glorious moment, he pulled back a bit so he separated himself from her in his mind. She must have realized what he was doing, because she retreated gently, softly caressing every strand of his consciousness as she did so, as if she was bidding each farewell.

She was leaving his mind. She was moving on with her life. Now he could go. He could leave this universe and know she’d be alright.


	19. Chapter 19

Author's Notes:

Alright gang mind the rating, but this time for GOOD things!!! Were nearing the end of the story now folks. Just one more chapter after this.  


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### Identity Theft - Chapter 19: Grief and Joy

The Doctor paced around the console, anxiously waiting for Rose to return. It hadn’t been his place to be there… he knew that. Still, it didn’t make it easier, knowing she was hurting… feeling it from her in his mind. He’d had to resign himself to the fact there was nothing he could do about it. She had wanted to go to him and he had to honour that.

The trip to the hospital had been solemn, with none of the boundless enthusiasm they both normally injected into their travels. They’d landed exactly when she’d hoped… her younger self would apparently be gone from the hospital for a spell.

Watching her leave the TARDIS had to been incredibly difficult, but he couldn’t help but be proud of her. His Rose. Despite her anxiety, she’d steeled herself and put on a brave face before she’d strode out the doors and back into one of the most difficult times in her life. He had to hand it to her… he wasn’t sure if he could’ve done the same. If it had been him that had to visit Liz before she died… could he have found it in himself to visit her again only days… hours… before her passing? He knew the answer. He wouldn’t be able to. It would kill him. He only hoped Rose was going to pull through this visit in the end.

He’d been ruminating and pacing for fifty-four minutes (and thirty-seven seconds…) before the doors of the TARDIS once again swung open. Rose walked in slowly and closed them behind her before turning back toward him to just… stand. Tears still snaked down her cheeks, but her face was impassive and her gaze was vacant. She looked numb.

Making his way down the stairs, he approached her carefully. She seemed like she might shatter into small pieces if he so much as moved too quickly. Swallowing, he whispered, “Rose?”

Her eyes looked up into his then, and that’s when her face crumpled into despair. An aching sob escaped her and she seemed to crumble in on herself, clutching at her middle as she slid down to the floor.

Jumping to her side, the Doctor gathered her in his arms. She went willingly, letting him cradle and rock her as she sobbed, her body convulsing with emotion.

Once again, everything inside him wanted to help her… to make it all better. The bonding instinct amplified his need to see that she was taken care of… that she was alright, and he found himself actively fighting the desire to help her sleep… to take away the pain if even for a short time. She wouldn’t want that and he knew it. He needed to be bigger than instinct right now, even though her pain was pulling him apart inside.

“He… he’s…”

“I know…” the Doctor said, soothing her. He was going to be gone soon. In this time stream. Her husband was so very close to passing away even as they sat together on the floor of the TARDIS.

“I… I love him,” she choked into his chest.

The words pulled at him in a very uncomfortable way, but he couldn’t fault her for them. If he’d had to revisit Liz just before her passing, he would’ve had to admit to the same feelings. “I know,” he said, stroking her hair. Rose continued crying for a while more before her tears turned to exhausted hiccups and eventually, even breathing. Looking down, he saw her eyes closed and her lips parted in sleep. Tracks of tears stained her cheeks and shirt and his jacket was damp with her crying. His brave girl. Gathering her up, he stood slowly and carried her reverently to their room. Laying her carefully on the bed, he pulled the covers up over her still clothed body and slid in behind her to hold her to him. Whatever happened, she wasn’t going to wake up without him there right beside her. Despite his innate desire to find a way to just quickly end her suffering, he promised himself he would let her grieving take its natural course. He was going to be there to help her through this.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Rose woke some hours later to find herself tangled in a Time Lord blanket. His arms were wrapped protectively around her and his legs were draped over hers as if he was protecting her from some unknown threat. Through their bond she felt protectiveness coming from his sleeping mind, and she marvelled at the feeling. How could he be so wonderful… so understanding? Despite that fact that only hours ago she’d told him she loved someone else, he’d stuck by her and even held her as she’d grieved. Fresh tears sprung to her eyes. This man… this incredible being… cared for her so much that he was able to put aside his jealousy and his own insecurities for her. Shame filled her with the thought. It had been so unfair to put him through seeing her after that visit. Even in his sleep, she could feel an echo of anxiety in him. He didn’t deserve to feel that way. He deserved to feel safe and loved, just as she already did… because of him.

Turning over in his arms, she experimentally pushed a thought in his direction. _I love you,_ she tried to say, staring at his handsome features. In his sleep, his lips curled up into a soft smile for a moment and she grinned. He felt it.

She wondered then if she could send him an image rather than words. Summoning a picture of them together, walking down the beach hand in hand, she pushed it through their bond. His eyes twitched under their lids and once again a small smile found his lips.

Hmmm. Interesting possibilities rolled around in her mind with this discovery and she found herself stirring... No. No, she shouldn’t. Not after all this. But then…

Conjuring a rather erotic image of them snogging, she aimed it in his mental direction and waited. A soft moan escaped his lips and she watched his brows furrow as he received her ‘message’. Within moments she felt a flutter of arousal echo through their bond and his pelvis pushed against hers. A spiral of need circled through her then, making her groan.

“Rose Tyler,” the Doctor muttered sleepily, his eyes cracking open, “...are you trying to seduce me?”

Rose smiled. “That depends,” she answered cheekily.

“Oh yes? On what, exactly?” he said, pulling her even closer to himself so she felt the full length of his interest in her pressing against her hip.

A little gasp escaped her with the contact, momentarily robbing her of words. A deep chuckle found her ear as he began kissing the bottom part of her neck. “It depends on whether I’d be successful with said seduction,” she breathed, enjoying his continued attention to her skin.

“Oh, I think you’d be _very_ successful,” he murmured, his lips barely leaving her skin to utter the words as he trailed them around to press against the side of her neck… just… there. If she’d felt even a bit whipped up before now, that was nothing compared to the arousal now blowing through her body with the work of his lips, tongue and teeth against _that spot_ on her neck.

Arching up into him, she suddenly wanted nothing more than to be joined to him in every way they had at their disposal. Reluctantly pushing him back, she quickly moved off of him to divest herself of her clothing while the Doctor looked on with an expression that resembled someone seeing fine artwork for the first time. His scrutiny made her squirm a bit, but it didn’t stop her. She was on a mission now.

Moving back over him, she encouraged him to free himself of his clothes as well by undoing the button of his trousers while kissing the seam of the fabric currently touching his skin. He drew a sharp breath with the wet contact of her tongue against his skin, and she relished the sound. _This_ was what she wanted him to feel. Wanted.

Tucking her fingers under the band of his boxers, she pulled them and his trousers down to reveal his now impressive erection. The action made him groan and she watched his face as she wrapped her hand around his length. His eyes slammed shut with the contact and his head flung back into the pillow under his head.

The sight of him so very aroused sent a spike of need straight to her groin, moistening her instantly. Suddenly the Doctor took a deep, ragged breath in and his eyes flew open to reveal dark pools of desire. Ohhh… he’d smelled her.

Suddenly, grabbing her to him, he flipped them over on the bed, tearing off his shirt as he did so. Hovering over her, his lips crashing down on hers as he nestled his cock between her parted legs. Opening them further to give him room, she urged him to continue by wrapping her legs around him and pressing her heels into his backside. The contact made him shudder and surge forward, his length sliding into her smoothly, blessedly filling and stretching her.

A lusty moan issued from her throat as she found his hands and raised them to slide against the side of her face. Dragging his fingertips up, she gently touched the pads of his fingers to her temples. Even the suggestion of joining again in this way made the Doctor gasp. “Rose… are you sure?” he asked raggedly, his breaths now coming in pants.

“I’ve never been so sure of anything,” she assured him. He was worried about their minds joining again so soon after… after what had happened to her. But this was what she wanted. No… this was what she _needed_. As much as the idea of not feeling in complete control of her own mind frightened her, she trusted him completely and she needed him to know that.

Rose could tell the Doctor was nearly overcome with the need to be in her mind, and she encouraged him again, by placing her own fingers against his temples. He was too frightened of hurting her. Too worried she wasn’t ready. But she was, and she knew he needed this as much as she did. Pushing herself into his mind, she heard a sharp intake of breath come from him and with it, his mind instinctively sought out hers as well.

Their connection shone brightly as they danced through each other’s minds, carefully treading but thoroughly revelling in each other’s consciousness as their bodies moved together. It wasn’t long before bliss began to overtake caution and they each flew headlong into blinding climaxes with shouts and curses pouring from their lips.

It took minutes before the aftershocks and panting breaths of their lovemaking calmed and they lay sated in each other’s arms. And it was much longer before Rose rustled up the courage to bring up the heavy topic of yesterday. “I’m sorry… about last night,” she started. “I just… he was important to me. So important…”

“You don’t have to explain, Rose,” the Doctor interrupted. “I know what he meant to you.”

A sad smile found her lips then. “I know you do. And I’m… I really am so grateful. But Doctor, I need you to know…” she trailed off, looking up at him then, tears beginning to sting her eyes again. “I love you. So, so much. And… I think… I know he wanted that for me. He wanted me to be happy with you,” she shared, remembering her husbands words.

“And are you? Happy with me?” he said, suddenly sounding more unsure than she ever remembered seeing him.

“This is where I’m meant to be, Doctor. In your arms. Forever. And right now… with you… I’m happier than I’ve ever been,” she murmured softly before pressing her lips to his.  



	20. Chapter 20

Author's Notes:

This is it, folks! The last chapter of the last story in this series! Thank-you so so very much to all whove read, faved, commented, questioned and even called me Evil! Im so grateful for it all.

Now onward to the end.  


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### Identity Theft - Chapter 20: New Start

"Pass the blueberries, Da,” the teen said, taking a swig of her Yupilroot beer.

“They’re not blueberries, Sarah,” the Doctor corrected. “They’re shupple seeds. If there were actual blueberries on this planet the locals would probably die of surprise. No such thing as fruit on this planet.”

“Then why do they taste so sweet? I’ve never had a sweet seed before,” she asked, taking a handful of the seeds from the basket the Doctor offered her.

“Weeellll… not every planet has plants analogous to earth’s. The way these ones reproduce is fascinating, actually. You see, the male plant selectively chooses its female counterpart in a rather lewd dance… I’d rather you didn’t experience that anytime soon, actually…”

“ _Doctor_ ,” Rose warned as she shuffled closer on the blanket and reached across him to take some of the seeds for herself.

“What?! I’m just trying to explain how these delicious seeds came about…” he said, his eyebrows raised in innocence.

“Yes, well… how about we save that for a few trips from now, yeah? Like when she’s about twenty?” Rose said significantly, pecking him lightly on the cheek.

“Oh. Right. Yeah… probably best to save the details for when you’re a bit older,” he agreed. “Anyhow… all you need to know is that they’re a brilliant source of vitamin L, which your human body will convert into iodine,” he shared.

“Uh… yeah,” Sarah said, putting the remaining seeds she’d taken back into the basket. “Thanks, but… no thanks. I’m not eating reproductive seeds, thanks,” she said, grimacing significantly.

“Oi! Everything reproduces, you know,” the Doctor started. “Even lettuce reproduces. Actually, there’s a funny story about how that came about…” he began.

“DOCTOR!” Rose said loudly in an effort to stop the inevitably graphic explanation that would likely lead to the teen never eating a vegetable again. “How about we pack up, yeah? Shouldn’t we be getting Sarah back to her Mom?”

“Oh, right,” the Doctor said rather dejectedly. “I suppose,” he allowed. Sighing, he stood and dusted off his suit and he and Sarah began packing away the picnic they’d just finished.

Watching them working side by side to gather the remains of their lunch, her hearts (God… it still felt so odd that she had _two_ of them) brimmed. It hadn’t been easy getting either the Doctor or Sarah to this point.

Not long after the Doctor had managed to get rid of the Master in her mind, they’d talked about what they both needed to do to completely move on from the horrific event. Of course, the topic of Alec’s daughter came up and Rose had taken the opportunity to make sure he knew how very important it was that he stay in contact with his teenager. Much to her relief and satisfaction, the Doctor had agreed… after a very long and heartfelt conversation… that he wanted to try to continue a relationship with Sarah. Rose knew how important it was to have a father figure present in your life and she was truly relieved that her impassioned plea for the Doctor to be there for Sarah was heard. She knew that despite the initial pain for both the Doctor and Sarah, it would be worth it in the end. So she’d encouraged the Doctor to come clean with his human daughter.

It had been a hard road, to be sure. They’d both known it wasn’t going to be an easy concept for Sarah to accept. Her Dad was an alien. Of course, when the Doctor dropped that particular bomb, Sarah didn’t believe a word of it. Naturally, at first, Sarah had scoffed at his claims, but with a little cajoling from Rose, she’d agreed to at least see the TARDIS before she wrote off her father as a raving lunatic.

Of course, on seeing the magnificent ship, she’d abandoned her arguments in favour of a thousand questions. Who was he _really_. How come he didn’t look like a ‘real alien’? How come his ship was shaped like a phone box? What planet was he from? Did this mean that she was really an alien as well? Understandably, the questions kept coming. The Doctor, to his credit, answered each and every question with a patient, teen-friendly answer, and when she finally ran out of questions… at least for the time being… he’d taken her back to her mother’s with a promise that he’d take her for a trip in his ship the following weekend with the proviso that she not tell a soul about his confession. She readily agreed, and true to her word, she’d managed to keep it a secret.

The following weekend (for Sarah, at least… it was just the next day for the Doctor and Rose) they took her for her first trip. Barcelona. Rose laughed at the suggestion when the Doctor made it, but readily agreed it was a good first destination, since she, herself, had never actually gotten to see said planet in her universe.

They’d spent the next five days in a row (for them) taking Sarah on trips in the TARDIS and showing her what all it was capable of, and this time the Doctor had planned a picnic on the sands of Glister; a two sunned planet in the Jux nebula.

“Can we go somewhere new next time, Da?” Sarah asked. “Like… somewhere with, oh… I don’t know… maybe somewhere where there’s other teenagers?” she suggested innocently.

The Doctor looked at her askance. You mean, ‘Can we go somewhere with teenage _boys_ ,’ right?”

Sarah blushed adorably. “Maybe,”she admitted.

“No way,” the Doctor said decidedly. “There’s no way I’m gonna let any daughter of mine date anytime before she’s fifty!” he declared seriously.

“What?!” Sarah blurted.

“Um…Doctor,” Rose said under her breath as she drew him aside, “…she’s _human_ , remember?”

“Oh. Yeah, right,” he said, thinking. “Alright…twenty-five, then,” he said, obviously feeling he’d made a large concession.

“Twenty-five?!” Sarah cried. “That’s insane!” she whined.

“ _Doctor_ …” Rose said, obviously entreating him to see reason.

Sighing, the Doctor looked at his daughter, who was clearly flabbergasted by what he considered a pretty fair compromise. Looking back at Rose, whose expression was clearly one of love but slight exasperation, he finally acquiesced. “Rassilon. Alright. I suppose…” he said, looking at Rose, “seventeen?”

Rose responded with a lopsided smile and raised eyebrows.

“Er…sixteen and a half. Yup. Sixteen and a half. But _no sooner_ he emphasized with no hint of humour.

Rolling her eyes dramatically, Sarah said, “Fine.” Then, turning to Rose when the Doctor had turned and was trundling back to the TARDIS with the picnic basket and blanket, Sarah whispered conspiratorially, “That’s only a week from now.”

“I heard that!” the Doctor shouted back over his shoulder. “Superior hearing, remember?”

“Oops,” Sarah cringed, smiling at Rose, who smiled back in return.

As they walked, Rose hung back with Sarah a bit. “Don’t forget our agreement, Sarah,” Rose cautioned seriously.

“I know. Don’t tell anyone about Da. I get it. But… Rose…” she trailed off, clearly concerned about something.

Reading her like a book, Rose said, “You’re lonely, aren’t you?”

Looking aghast at the older female, Sarah breathed, “How did you know?”

Rose smiled. She’d never had to live completely alone, without anyone who she could confide in about the Doctor and her travels, but she could imagine it. It would eat a person up. “It would drive me mad not being able to talk about all this with anyone. It only makes sense you’re finding it difficult.”

Sarah nodded. “Yeah. I just… it’s like… my whole life has changed, you know? What with Da being an alien an’ all. If I’d not seen it with my own eyes…” she trailed off once again.

“I know,” Rose smiled sympathetically. This poor girl had been through a lot in this last year and a bit. First, her parents split up and her Dad ran off to England, then said Dad turned up and confessed he was actually an alien. No small change for anyone, let alone a hormonal, emotionally stressed teen.

It had been five weeks for Sarah since she found out the truth, and the visits happened every weekend, as far as she was concerned, since that time. She and the Doctor had spaced the visits that way so as not to overwhelm her, but the Doctor had been too excited initially to space out their visits more than a day apart for themselves. She knew she’d have to talk to him about that soon, otherwise they’d go through her time stream so quickly they’d go through all their visiting time in the blink of an eye.

In any case, it had only been a month for Sarah, and she was already starting to feel the weight of their secret. It saddened Rose that such a joyous thing as a father / daughter reunion should take such a toll on her. In fact, Rose knew it was probably time for a little intervention.

Taking the girl’s hand and pulling her to a halt, she pulled a piece of paper from the bag she’d brought with her to the beach. Handing it to the teen, she said, “This is for you. I thought one day you might need it. You already have our cell, and you know you can call us anytime you need to, but… well, sometimes it’s nice to have someone else you can talk to about all this, yeah? And these people…” she said, pointing to the list of names she’d just handed to Sarah, “...they understand. They’ve all travelled with him. Your Dad. They know what it’s like and they know how hard it can be to try to have a normal life after finding out about all… this,” she said, gesturing to the world around her.

Sarah looked up at her, unsure. “But… they won’t want to talk to me. I’m just a kid,” she said, looking again at the list in her hands.

Rose smiled. “No. You’re not. You’re a young woman who knows more about the universe now than most humans on the planet. That puts you in a very unique category. And these people… they get it. They are in the same position. No matter what age you are… that’s a pretty surreal position to be in,” she said.

Sarah looked again at the list. “It would be nice to meet other people who’ve met Da,” she admitted.

“Think about it. You don’t have to call them. But we’ve told them you might be contacting them. They’ve all said they’d be happy to hear from you,” Rose shared.

Sarah looked down at the list of names and numbers Rose had given her and her attractive young face screwed up in confusion. “Wait. Jack Harkness… isn’t that the one who saved you and Da from that crazy Time Lord?” she asked, amazed.

“That’s him,” Rose confirmed. “He saved me. And your Dad. If it weren’t for him… well, we’d be in a very different place by now,” Rose confessed.

After their first visit with Sarah, they’d stopped back at Rose’s place in Broadchurch, not long after the Doctor had left, to update Jack on what had happened. She knew he’d be worried about her and had insisted they go back to thank him for his help. The Doctor had reluctantly agreed, though he obviously wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about purposefully going to see the man again. It was then she’d told Jack about Sarah and asked if he’d be alright with her contacting him. The Doctor hadn’t seemed particularly pleased with the idea, which of course made Jack all the more willing to help out. Rose smiled with the memory.

Sarah nodded, clearly considering the information as they began walking again.

“You’re not alone, Sarah,” Rose reiterated. “We’re always here. Call if you ever need us, yeah?” she said, wrapping a supportive arm around the teen’s shoulders.

Thanks,” she said, looked up thankfully into Rose’s eyes.

“Anytime,” she said, giving her a little squeeze before they moved on to the TARDIS to return her home.


End file.
